Rough sleeping and begging are no longer criminalised under the Vagrancy Act 1824 after the UK government repealed the law in England and Wales on 29 June.

The repeal ends one of the most criticised surviving pieces of nineteenth-century social legislation. Ministers said the Act had punished people simply for not having a home and had made it harder for vulnerable people to seek support. Homelessness charities have long argued that criminalisation pushes people away from services and can deepen the barriers to housing and employment.

The policy shift does not mean that every issue connected with street homelessness disappears from policing or local government. The government has said replacement measures will focus on genuine criminal activity, including organised begging by gangs and some forms of trespass, while moving rough sleeping itself out of criminal law.

The practical test will come in implementation. Councils, police forces and outreach teams will need clear guidance on how to respond to people sleeping rough without falling back on punitive habits.

For people on the street, the legal change matters because a fine or criminal record can make recovery harder. But the end of the Vagrancy Act is a starting point rather than a full homelessness strategy.