Black people in England are over three times more likely than white British people to experience homelessness, according to a new report produced by researchers at Heriot-Watt University in partnership with Race on the Agenda and Oak Foundation using data from the UK Data Service, government statistical services, and the Office for National Statistics.
Homelessness and Black and Minoritised Ethnic Communities in the UK: A Statistical Report on the State of the Nation (PDF) authored by Professor Glen Bramley, Professor Suzanne Fitzpatrick, Jill McIntyre, and Professor Sarah Johnsen, also found that a history of discrimination is associated with elevated risks of homelessness. Around 32% of black people who had experienced homelessness reported previous discrimination from a social or private landlord.
The report is part of a wider programme intended to support a change in the evidence base on homelessness among people from black and minority ethnic communities. UK Data Service curated data collections used in the research are national surveys funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and include the British Household Panel Survey, Understanding Society, the English Housing Survey, the Scottish Household Survey, the Labour Force Survey, and the 1970 British Cohort Study.
Two of the authors, Professor Glen Bramley and Professor Suzanne Fitzpatrick, have written about the value of our data collections and their research in our Data Impact blog. We have also published a detailed case study outlining their findings and policy recommendations.
This work underlines the vital role the UK Data Service continues to play in facilitating research on inequality across the UK. We would encourage anyone interested in this topic to explore our available data collections.