Taking Place: A Day of Talks on Homelessness and Housing Justice

Homelessness in the United Kingdom is on the rise. At the start of 2020 at least one out of every 200 people in England is living without permanent or safe accommodation. Homeless deaths have increased by 20% in England and Wales over the last year. There has been a significant response from communities, who have set up shelters and Streets Kitchens in public spaces across the UK. Sustained campaigning from a wide range of groups and individuals, notably Crisis, resulted in the Homelessness Reduction Act coming into force in 2018. Despite this, 91% of local authorities in the UK did not respond to basic questions about homelessness when contacted.

To coincide with the new exhibition, Anthony Luvera: Taking Place, curated by Futurecity, in association with Museum of Homelessness, at The Gallery at Foyles, Anthony Luvera will be hosting Taking Place: A Day of Talks on Homelessness and Housing Justice on Thursday 27th February, 2020 from 9:30am – 5:30pm at The Auditorium in Foyles Bookstore, London.

This event will bring together a range of speakers, including artists, activists, academics, and people working in the homelessness support and housing sector, to discuss and better understand the issues our society currently faces when dealing with homelessness, housing precarity, and housing justice.

Speakers include:

Anthony Luvera, Artist, writer and educator

Matt and Jess Turtle, Co-Founders, Museum of Homelessness

Prof. Nicholas Crowson, Professor of Contemporary British History, University of Birmingham

Amy McDonnell, Curator, Researcher and Campaigner

Samir Jeraj, Co-author of the Rent Trap and Journalist at The New Statesman

Bekki Perriman, Artist

Cllr. Diarmaid Ward, Executive Member, Housing & Development, Islington Council

Dr. Owen Clayton, Senior Lecturer, School of English and Journalism, University of Lincoln

David Thomas, Legal Officer, Brighton and Hove Housing Coalition

More speakers to be announced