Over 550 Norwich residents sign petition “Don’t let homeless people freeze on our streets this winter”
At the Full Council meeting on 24th Tuesday, Norwich residents will present a petition signed by 568 people asking the Council to take urgent action to ensure people experiencing homelessness aren’t left out in freezing temperatures and extreme weather conditions this winter.
This is in reaction to a letter published in the Guardian last year by a Norwich charity worker who witnessed how refugees experiencing homelessness were refused shelter by Norwich City Council during freezing temperatures. (1)
One chilling quote read, “One young man described his fear at 4am, under the bridge where he was sleeping, when it started snowing; how he had chest pains and felt his body lock up.”
The petition is calling for the Council to:
- Confirm that overnight Winter Shelters will be open every day of the week over the Winter period;
- Urgently review the Severe Weather Emergency Protocol so that it takes into account all forms of extreme weather, is based on the ‘feels like’ temperature and brings rough sleepers in BEFORE we reach freezing temperatures;
- Keep all homeless people safe from freezing temperatures and extreme weather over this Winter period, including refugees who are disproportionately impacted by failures in homelessness services.
Serene Shibli, a local campaigner and Green Party member who will present the petition said, “it’s unacceptable that in Norwich a ‘city of sanctuary’ we have city council policies that would turn away someone in need and risk leaving people out in dangerously low temperatures. It’s reckless and irresponsible, and we need to be demanding more as no one should be left out in the cold.”
Green Party Councillors Hannah Hoechner and Alex Catt will be proposing a motion at the same council meeting in support of the petition, in response to rumours that Norwich City Council is not planning to run a Winter Night Shelter for people experiencing homelessness this year, and given that the Council’s severe weather protocol is not currently in line with best practice.
Cllr Hannah Hoechner said:
“The Council’s current policy would leave people out in potentially freezing temperatures for up to three days and it does not take into account the ‘feels-like’ temperature or other extreme weather conditions like rain, snow or gales. Experiences on the ground show us that people in need have been refused access in the past. We must make sure this never happens again.”
“We hope that political groups across the Chamber will unite to support this motion so that nobody risks dying of cold on Norwich’s streets this winter.”
According to the ‘Dying Homeless Project’, 1,313 people experiencing homelessness died on the streets of the United Kingdom in 2022 when statistics were last compiled. (3)