"Churches across the Diocese of London [UK] are expressing alarm at the dramatically increasing numbers of newly-recognized refugees experiencing homelessness," states a press release from the Diocese of London on October 10.

The Diocese is the latest organization to point to problems with reported changes in Home Office practice, related to the notice period given to quit accommodation provided for asylum seekers.

A month ago, InfoMigrants reported on the same issue, when the UK's Refugee Council joined 140 other organizations publishing an open letter to the government highlighting problems in the transfer period between being an asylum seeker and being a recognized refugee in Britain.

Essentially, during this transfer period, any welfare due to any newly recognized refugee is moved from support earmarked for asylum seekers to the general welfare support system.

This is a process which requires certain documents, some of which, organizations say, are often not issued in time for a seamless transition from one system of welfare to another.

Home Office denies change in policy

At the time, InfoMigrants asked the Home Office about the reported changes and a reduction in the notice period from 28 days to seven, and was told that nothing had really changed, but that the previous stated rules were now being properly enforced.

In a written statement in mid-September, a Home Office spokesperson said all "individuals will get at least 28 days to move on from accommodation and where an individual has not had a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) issued within the 28-day notice period, they remain on support until it is issued."

Also read: How Europe's housing crisis affects migrants

The all-important BRP card entitles a recognized refugee to log into the UK's welfare system known as Universal Credit, and also apply to get on a local council's housing list.

But charities that work with migration say that not only are there delays in issuing these BRPs, but also that many newly-recognized refugees do not realise that they will have to leave their accommodation until they are issued with a final notice to quit, seven days prior to having to leave the accommodation.

The organizations underlined in their open letter to Home Secretary Suella Braverman, dated September 6, that the real problem about the notice period was when the 28-day period began:

The government says that it starts on the date the letter notifying an asylum seeker that they have obtained refugee status is dated. This can lead to problems when letters do not arrive with their recipient soon after they are sent.

The charities think that the notice period should not only start once a residence permit (BRP) is actually issued, but should also be extended to 56 days; to cover the time it takes once a refugee begins applying with their BRP to enter the welfare system for money to arrive. 

The organizations say that often seven to ten days elapse between receiving a grant letter informing them of their refugee status and then receiving the BRP which means that people have very little time to "engage with the processes that are vital for them to avoid homelessness and destitution."

'Many refugees are feeling quite desperate'

They asked the government in the letter to consider extending the period to 56 days, because the government's own Homelessness Reduction Act recognizes that "at least 56 days are usually needed to find accommodation for those at risk of homelessness."

Welfare payments, known as Universal Credit, meanwhile also have a built-in 35 day delay before a first payment is made.

Also read: Homeless migrants targeted by UK government's new immigration rules

"Many refugees are feeling quite desperate and have left volunteers feeling exhausted, not knowing where to refer people. We have compiled lists of homelessness charities and organizations to refer people into, but all face long waiting lists," explained Zach Gain, part of Kings Cross Church in the center of London, who runs a weekly drop-in and language café for refugees and asylum seekers.

One of the volunteers at the café, Tommy, shared the story of one of the refugees they work with: "He was sent an eviction notice on Thursday, telling him he needed to be out of his hotel by Monday morning.

"The letter had been delayed, leaving him just three working days to figure out where he would sleep on Monday night. He was confused about what to do next, having thought he would have more time to prepare himself and work with the council and other organizations to find somewhere to stay post-hotel," explained Tommy.

'I am going to keep sleeping on the streets'

Tommy said the man had tried to contact the council but they had no translator to assist. The refugee had told him, "It's okay, I am going to keep sleeping on the streets and keep trying [to contact the authorities.]"

Another Syrian refugee who contacted Zach Gain at the center said he was in "great distress" explains Gain, because by the time he received his grant letter confirming he had been given refugee status, he only had four days to move out of the accommodation where he had been placed.

The letter stated, said Gain, that he should already have received his BRP, but he hadn't.

"He was pretty desperate as he had not received it," remembers Gain. "Without it, he couldn't access any support or even put himself up in a hostel with no ID. The contingency hostel had threatened to call the police if he'd stayed," explained Gain.

Also read: Accommodation troubles continue for Afghan refugees in the UK

Another volunteer at the center, Poppy, said that a lot of the team "feel untrained to handle this sudden increase in need in our community." Many of them were trying to help the refugees fill out forms and working out which authority to approach but often feel confused about where to start.

"It is upsetting to see people we have built trust and relationships with, struggling with something as fundamental as access to accommodation. Many volunteers feel at a loss of what to do."

'Seven-day eviction notices provide no time to find anywhere to stay'

Pattie Gercke, a Refugee and Asylum Development worker who supports church communities across the Diocese of London, confirmed that the numbers of new refugees experiencing homelessness was on the rise.

"It is appalling to see men and women, who our church communities have journeyed with through their asylum claims, being told by the Home Office that their claims are valid, but then having to sleep on the street," Gercke said.

"Seven-day eviction notices provide no time to find anywhere to stay, and this is creating an unnecessary homeless emergency," she concluded.

The Bishop of Stepney, the Right Reverend Joanne Woolway Grenfell, said she calls "upon our government to act with compassion and humanity, allowing refugees in this situation a much more reasonable time to find accommodation, and to begin their integration into this country."

The Diocese, like the other 140 organizations that wrote the open letter in September, reiterated that they would like the government to extend the move-on period to 56 days, and that the period should start on receipt of their BRP, not on receipt of their grant letter.