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The number of refugees sleeping rough on London’s streets has risen by 800% in two months, following a change in Home Office policy.

The capital is home to around a quarter of the country’s asylum seekers, many of them living in hotels.

Once a person has their refugee status accepted, they are normally given 28 days to leave their state-provided accommodation.

But Sky News has seen evidence that many refugees are getting much less than 28 days, sometimes as little as a week, forcing them into homelessness.

Before August, the 28-day period began when a refugee received their Biometric Residence Permit (BRP), necessary for them to access Universal Credit and other benefits.

However, in the summer, the Home Office began counting down from the day a refugee received their asylum decision letter.

Since the BRP and other documents can sometimes take weeks to arrive, some people are being given as little as seven days to find a new place to live.

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There were 11 people sleeping rough having just left asylum accommodation in London in July – but by September that figure was 102, a rise of 827%.

The Red Cross estimates that without extra support, 50,000 refugees could be at risk of homelessness across the UK.

The ‘hidden homeless’

London’s deputy mayor for housing, Tom Copley, said that these figures were “only the people we know about on the streets”.

He added: “There are going to be other people who are what we call hidden homeless. They may end up sleeping on sofas, with friends, or other forms of accommodation we’re not aware of.

“And the really tragic thing is this is all really avoidable if the government were just to change some of their policies, like giving a longer notice period, for example.”

The government is speeding up asylum processing to meet its pledge of clearing the backlog of cases by the end of the year.

‘I was terrified’

Adam (not his real name) fled persecution in Yemen in fear for his life.

He waited two years for his asylum claim in the UK to be processed, finishing a PhD in that time. But just days after being granted official refugee status, he was living on the streets.

“I was terrified,” he said. “I had been dreaming about the opportunities, what I will do, how I will start my life here in the UK.

“However, everything changed. Instead of that nice blue-sky scenario I was imagining, I found myself on the street.

“All I was thinking about was a dry, warm place to sleep. The dream’s vanished. I was like: ‘sleep’. That’s it.”

'Adam' refugee for Thompson homelessness lead
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Adam (L) spoke to Sky News about his experience

Adam was saved by the charity Refugees at Home, who found a family to take him in.

Executive director Carly Whyborn said: “Charities like us are stretched beyond our limits trying to help refugees who are being turfed out at short notice and are facing winter on the streets.

“Three times more people are coming to us for help this year compared to last year. We had 204 referrals in October alone, compared to 69 in October 2022.”

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A coalition of charities including the Red Cross and Refugees at Home, backed by London mayor Sadiq Khan, have called for the notice period to be increased to 56 days, giving refugees time to move on and find somewhere to live.

In a statement, the Home Office told Sky News: Once someone is informed that their asylum claim has been granted, they get at least 28 days notice to move on from their asylum accommodation.

“Support is offered to newly recognised refugees by Migrant Help and their partners, which includes advice on how to access the Universal Credit, the labour market and where to get assistance with housing.

“We work with local authorities to help communities manage the impact of asylum decisions.”

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Child dies and another injured after car driven on to sports pitch

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Child dies and another injured after car driven on to sports pitch

A child has died and another has been injured after a car was driven on to a sports pitch in Cumbria.

Police say they were called at 4.58pm to reports of a collision involving a BMW i40 and two children on a pitch at Kendal Rugby Union Football Club on Shap Road, in Kendal.

Cumbria Police say one child died, while the second is being treated by paramedics.

A man aged in his 40s has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.

A spokesperson for Cumbria Police said: “Specialist investigators are at the scene and the area has been cordoned off as initial investigation enquiries take place.”

The force said the incident was not believed to be terror-related. Immediate family members of both children have been informed, it added.

In a post on its Facebook page, the club said it was “deeply saddened to confirm that an incident occurred today at Kendal Rugby Club.”

The post, attributed to club chairman Dr Stephen Green, continued: “Our thoughts are with their family and friends and we kindly ask for privacy for all involved at this difficult time.”

The club and its facilities are now temporarily closed while it cooperates “fully” with authorities, it added.

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Tim Farron MP, whose constituency includes Kendal, posted on X: “This is devastating, utterly heartbreaking news. I’m praying for the children and for their families and friends.

“Our community in Kendal is stunned and in mourning.”

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PhD student guilty of drugging and raping 10 women in London and China

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PhD student guilty of drugging and raping 10 women in London and China

A man has been convicted of drugging and raping 10 women in London and China between 2019 and 2023.

Chinese PhD student Zhenhao Zou, 28, filmed nine of the attacks as “souvenirs”, and kept a trophy box of women’s belongings, jurors in his trial were told.

Warning: This article contains details of sexual offences

He was accused in court of drugging and raping three women in London and seven in China between 2019 and 2023.

Jurors at Inner London Crown Court found him guilty of 11 charges of rape against 10 women, including two who have been identified and another eight who have yet to be traced.

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Moment police arrest student guilty of rape

The mechanical engineering student was also convicted of three counts of voyeurism, 10 of possession of an extreme pornographic image, one of false imprisonment and three of possession of a controlled drug with intent to commit a sexual offence, namely butanediol.

He was cleared of two further counts of possession of an extreme pornographic image and one of possession of MDMA with intent to commit a sexual offence.

***ONLY USE IF HE IS CONVICTED OF AT LEAST TWO RAPES*** The trial heard Zou kept a 'lost property box' full of women's belongings. Pic: Met Police
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The trial heard Zou kept a ‘lost property box’ full of women’s belongings. Pic: Met Police

The jury has not reached verdicts on four counts of possession of drugs with intent to commit a sexual offence.

Zou – who first moved to Belfast in 2017 to study mechanical engineering at Queen’s University before moving to London in 2019 – showed no visible reaction as the verdicts were read out in court.

Catherine Farrelly KC, prosecuting, told jurors during the trial that Zou “presents as a smart and charming young man” but is “also a persistent sexual predator; a voyeur and a rapist”.

***ONLY USE IF HE IS CONVICTED OF AT LEAST TWO RAPES*** A discreet camera belonging to Zou. Pic: Met Police
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A discreet camera belonging to Zou. Pic: Met Police

Zou, who also used the name Pakho online, befriended fellow Chinese students on WeChat and dating apps, before inviting them for drinks and drugging them at his flats in London or an unknown location in China, the court heard.

The jury heard how he would secretly film his attacks using a mobile device and hidden cameras, and was shown evidence found on SD cards at his accommodation of him raping unconscious women in London and in China.

Senior Crown Prosecution Service prosecutor Saira Pike thanked the “incredibly strong and brave” women who came forward to report his “heinous” crimes.

“Zou is a serial rapist and a danger to women,” she said.

“In some instances, we have not been able to identify Zou’s victims. Without knowing who these women are, we have not been able to support them through a deeply distressing period of time.

“We have always been determined to seek justice for both the unidentified and identified victims in this case.”

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James Scott Rhys Anderson: British man who ‘fought for Ukraine’ jailed for 19 years in Russia

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James Scott Rhys Anderson: British man who 'fought for Ukraine' jailed for 19 years in Russia

A British man has been jailed for 19 years after a Russian court found him guilty of fighting for Ukraine in the country’s Kursk region.

James Scott Rhys Anderson, 22, had been charged with terrorist and mercenary offences and was found guilty after a closed trial.

The court said he was to serve the first five years of his sentence in prison and the remainder in a penal colony.

In the trial, a Ukrainian soldier from the same unit was questioned as a witness.

Ukrainian troops broke across the border into Kursk region on 6 August last year.

They still hold some territory there seven months later, despite attempts by Russian forces to force them out.

Investigators accused Anderson of illegally crossing into Kursk in November as part of an armed group that committed unspecified “criminal acts against civilians”.

Russian state media published video showing him being led in handcuffs and locked in a cage of the kind where defendants in Russian court cases are placed.

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It apparently showed Anderson saying he had served in the British army from 2019-2023 before deciding to join the foreign legion of Ukraine’s armed forces.

Early on in the war, Ukraine’s authorities said more than 20,000 people from 52 countries came to Ukraine’s aid.

Since then, the number of foreign fighters in Ukraine’s military has been classified.

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