Cabinet Office written question – answered at on 8 February 2010.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated
As Director General I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how homeless people were counted in the 2001 Census; how many homeless people were counted; and how homeless people will be counted in the 2011 Census. (315333)
In the 2001 Census initial liaison took place with the Rough Sleepers Unit of the then Department of the Environment, Transport and Regions to explore the potential for them to assist and advise in counting persons sleeping rough. Some information on particular areas where there were known to be persons sleeping rough was obtained through this contact. Additionally every local authority within England and Wales was contacted for geographical information on persons sleeping rough and contact was made with organisations such as the National Homeless Alliance and Shelter from which volunteers were sought to help conduct the enumeration. The count of rough sleepers was held on census night between 22:00 hours and 06:00 hours the following morning. For each location containing one or more rough sleepers, the enumerators completed a communal establishment questionnaire, which had a specific category for rough sleepers and which provided an address to link the individuals to. The enumerators then either asked rough sleepers to complete their own individual questionnaire, or tried to gather basic demographic information to do this on the individual's behalf.
The total number of rough sleepers recorded in the 2001 Census in England and Wales was 938.
For the 2011 Census we are still researching the best methodology to use for counting people sleeping, or bedded down, in the open air (such as on the streets, or in doorways, parks or bus shelters); and people in buildings or other places not designed for habitation (such as barns, sheds, car parks, cars, derelict boats, or stations. We have liaised with the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) who are now responsible for overseeing work on this issue. We have also been in touch with local authorities who are required to conduct their own annual counts if they have more than ten rough sleepers to learn how they carry out their counts to see whether any successful procedures used by them could be used or modified.
Hostels or night shelters which have homeless people staying will be enumerated as Communal Establishments (CEs). CE managers will get a questionnaire to complete containing basic questions on the accommodation type and including a headcount of all visitors staying there on census night. However, anyone staying at the establishment who has no usual residence elsewhere would also be expected to complete an individual questionnaire, including any non UK residents who intend to stay in the country for three months or more. The individual questionnaire contains the complete set of census questions that would normally be completed by household residents.
Local census field managers will contact hostels and night shelters several weeks before the census to make arrangements and assess any requirements for special supplies such as literacy aids or translations. The questionnaires will then be delivered just before census day by a special enumerator. The CE manager is responsible for getting everything completed on census night. The special enumerator will then return and collect the questionnaires by hand shortly after census day.
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