Fill 'Em Up - The Big Issue launches empty buildings campaign | Big Issue #onn #olsx

Fill 'Em Up - The Big Issue launches empty buildings campaign | Big Issue

In parts of Britain, for every homeless family there are TEN homes lying empty. It's time for action - it's time to fill 'em up

The Big Issue is urging local authorities to address Britain’s chronic housing problem by exploring the potential usage of the nation’s abundance of empty buildings.

This week, we launch The Big Issue Fill ‘Em Up campaign. We believe empty buildings offer a great chance to increase housing supply. We want to see the following:

• More support and funding for community-led empty homes projects
• More public bodies engaging with community projects ready and willing to make the most of empty buildings
• More homeless people getting the chance to work on refurbishment projects

In parts of Britain, there are ten homes lying empty for every homeless family. The latest estimate from the Empty Homes Agency is that there are more than 635,000 empty homes in England alone.

Last week, former Manchester United star Gary Neville captured the public imagination by showing a flexible, common-sense willingness to use a resource which the country has in abundance: an empty building.