A Clear Breakdown of Key Terms to Help the Public Speak Up, Push for Housing Solutions, and Move Past Harmful Misconceptions

Invisible People: It’s happened to most of us at least once. We’ve walked past someone who didn’t have a home and wished we could help, but the fear of saying the wrong thing kept us silent and we didn’t act.

Perhaps you saw them on public transit or shuffling past your family in the park. Maybe they’re a kindly neighbor camping out on their sister’s sofa or a teenager you know who has a dark secret. Your heart went out to this person, and you wanted to speak up on their behalf, but you just couldn’t find the right words.

Are they sleeping rough or in need of a refuge? Are they living through hidden homelessness or housing insecurity? The words circle around like a crossword puzzle, perplexing. But it’s high time we had the hard conversations that eventually give way to real, data-driven solutions and stop allowing trivial things like constantly shifting vocabulary to get in our way.

Below are some common terms you’re likely to see or hear in UK homeless advocacy media, along with their accompanying definitions, so that you can chime in on the conversation.

What It Really Means to be ‘Sleeping Rough’

Homelessness is a growing concern worldwide. In countries with high wealth indexes like the US and the UK, extreme wealth inequality has paved the way for homelessness to exist. 

Take John, for example, a UK native who was homeless off and on for 30 years. John was gracious enough to oblige Invisible People with an exclusive interview from his hospital bed, where he struggled with health conditions and a debilitating cough. When asked about his experience with “rough sleeping”, he responded with a shrug.

“It is what it is,” said John. “It’s sleeping on the street.”

In UK terminology, the term “rough sleeping” is used to define the most extreme form of homelessness, which is sleeping on the street or in outside spaces unfit for human habitation. Other words that might be used interchangeably with rough sleeping include:

• Literal homelessness
• Unsheltered homelessness
• Unhoused

According to author Tracy Kidder, who chronicled an organization called Boston Health Care for the Homeless, the term “rough sleeping” dates back to 19th-century British slang and denotes an individual getting rest in rough places, such as park benches, abandoned loading docks, or even storage lockers.

Read full article on The Terms We Use to Describe Homelessness in the UK and Why They Matter