World Homeless Day

Thousands of homeless and vulnerable people in Kent are at breaking point. Join the movement to end homelessness in Kent.

Nobody should have to endure the misery of homelessness. Despite this, people sleeping rough in our towns and cities have become a familiar sight.

And for every person on the streets, there are more who are struggling unseen – some hiding from view, fearful of abuse. Others forced to sleep on floors and sofas, or in crowded B&Bs.

And things are getting worse. The Covid protection measures keeping people afloat have ended and it won’t take long for lives to spiral out of control.

People are struggling and more than 9,300 households in Kent are at risk of losing their homes this winter.

Help make World Homeless Day, 10 October, more than just a day.

Sign your name below, join the movement to end homelessness in Kent. Ask friends and family too.

More people turning to us

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64% increase

compared to pre-Covid.

Government protections ending

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5.5 million face poverty

with UK-wide cuts in Universal Credit.

Homelessness rising in Kent

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Over 9,300 at risk

as households fall into rent arrears.

I was cold, frightened and ashamed. Most people looked straight through me. But Porchlight saw a human being with potential.

There are many reasons people become homeless. Tamara lost her job when her contract wasn’t renewed after lockdown.

Even with Universal Credit she couldn’t cover costs. She had to choose whether to eat or pay the bills. She fell behind on rent.

Eventually *Tamara was evicted. With nowhere to turn, she was forced to sleep rough.

“I would walk all night because it felt safer than sleeping. I tried to escape the situation but it was soul destroying.”

Tamara had almost given up when she met Porchlight worker Vicky.

“Vicky really listened and managed to find me somewhere safe to stay.”

This led to a more permanent home, in a Porchlight shared house. It's cosy, warm and homely.

“It's the first time people have showed an interest in me, the person behind the homelessness."

Help more people like Tamara. Join the Porchlight community today to fight for a fairer future where everybody in Kent has a place to call home.

* Tamara isn't her real name, but the story is true.

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We're here for people 365 days a year

Our frontline teams have been working round the clock throughout the pandemic, making sure we are there to catch people like Tamara when they need us.

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Our street teams reach out to people facing the misery of rough sleeping. Last year they helped over 600 people to turn their lives around.

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Our helpline team are here for people with no one to turn to. They listen and get the right support in place. Last year they took over 33,000 calls.

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The pandemic has driven a mental health emergency, especially for vulnerable people. We supported more than 5,800 people in the community.

But there's still so much to do...

We strive for a fairer society where vulnerable people find stability, the most excluded are included, and where homelessness and poverty are things of the past.

We know one of the most effective ways to tackle homelessness is to prevent people from losing their home in the first place. So almost half of our work is about helping people to prevent any problems from reaching crisis point.

To bring about real change in our Kent community we must move closer to a fairer society that works better for everyone. We have set goals to achieve this, including:

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People have a safe, stable and affordable place to call home

Our rough sleeper street teams work tirelessly. We are also working towards more permanent housing solutions – like more affordable homes.

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People experiencing poverty and inequality get the support they need


We target our support where it’s needed most. We promote health, wellbeing and resilience, among groups facing the greatest inequalities.

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People are supported to have good mental health

We connect people to the right support for them. We work to address mental health inequalities in Kent.