St Mungo’s issues orange cold weather warning for homeless people in London
Cold weather warnings have been issued across London as temperatures plummet to “life-threatening” levels for thousands of homeless people.
It comes after mayor Sadiq Khan and London councils activated the Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP) across London in November to protect rough sleepers during the winter months.
homelessness charity St Mungos has now issued its own orange warning, admitting that any temperature below 6C could be “potentially life-threatening” for rough sleepers.
In the UK, temperatures dropped to 6C or below for 161 days last year; 87 percent of these occurred during the winter months, endangering those staying on the streets at night.
Lee, who spent “almost 30 years drifting through the streets” before being supported by St Mungo’s, described his experience of rough sleeping in winter: “Some mornings I woke up covered in snow, other nights I slept in a graveyard with squirrels gnawing on my sleeping bag for nesting material.
“It was a brutal existence, and I was beginning to believe that was what my life was all about.”
The warning comes at a critical time in the autumn, when the number of Brits sleeping rough on a single night is estimated to have risen to 4,667 last year.
This rate increased for the third year in a row, up 20 percent from the previous year; with almost half (45 per cent) of people in London and the South East.
The largest regional increase was in London, rising from 1,132 in 2023 to 1,318 in 2024; This number increased by 16 percent to 186 people.
More than 13,000 people were found to be rough sleeping by outreach workers in London in 2024-2025; this is the highest number ever recorded in London’s Combined Homelessness and Information Network (CHAIN) database.
Orange warnings will be displayed at train stations across the capital, where sleepers often turn for shelter, including Victoria, Kings Cross, Waterloo, Charing Cross, Euston and London Bridge. The campaign will highlight the dangers cold weather poses to people sleeping on the streets and how to seek support.
It comes after the mayor announced £10m earlier this year, the largest single investment to tackle homelessness, with an additional £17m coming from the government to end rough sleeping by 2030.
Cold weather can cause health risks such as hypothermia, frostbite and respiratory viruses and place an additional burden on health and social care services.
Last winter, almost half (43 per cent) of people assessed by St Mungo’s had physical health needs.
Current projections indicate that extreme cold-related deaths will peak around 2030, while moderate cold-related deaths are expected to reach their highest levels in the 2050s.
A third (33 per cent) of the country admit they don’t know how to support homeless people, while just 3 per cent of Brits recommend StreetLink, an app that supports rough sleepers.
St Mungo’s reports that almost half (40 per cent) of Britons did not donate or provide support to people who were homeless last year, so “the need for donations is greater than ever”.
How to help a homeless person
St Mungo’s has issued the following advice on what to do if you spot a homeless person:
- Contact your local authority’s ‘housing options’ team to see what help they can offer (for example, through emergency accommodation in a shelter or hostel, long-term accommodation in social housing or independent living).
- Use StreetLink, a national insomnia referral app that St Mungo’s is helping to run in London. It will inform outreach teams, local authorities and other homeless organizations about the person and their location, which will connect them to local support
- Contact Shelter, the homelessness and housing advice charity, on 0808 800 4444, which has a free housing advice helpline that can advise on rights and help explore available options.
- Day centers can help provide food, shelter, washing facilities, housing advice, skills and employment training, social and support networks. You can find your closest option by looking at Homeless Link’s searchable database of homeless services.
