Brian Robson

A stack of five books against a wall. They are, from top to bottom: - A moth to a flame, by Stig Dagerman - I will write to avenge my people, by Annie Ernaux - All the Young Men by Ruth Coker Burks and Kevin Carr O Leary - Nothing grows by moonlight, by Torborg Nedraas - Waist Deep, by Linea Maja Ernst

February's reading.

Really enjoyed discovering Stig Dagerman and Torborg Nedreaas' - both 4⭐ Annie Ernaux was as reliable as ever (though this month in lecture form)

'All The Young Men' was shocking, but a bit schmaltzy and heavy on the saviour for my liking.

#booksky

A white book with blue text sits on a chair, resting on a green cushion. The book is titled 'I will write to avenge my people' by Annie Ernaux.

Book 8 of 2026.

Annie Ernaux's Nobel lecture. I think I read it online at the time, but I am an Ernaux completist and I couldn't resist another crisp white Fitzcarraldo edition.

5⭐ because I'd happily read her shopping lists.

#booksky

Weekend incoming 🙌 If you're planning to be in or around the National Park, please:

🌧 Be weather prepared
🚮 Take all your litter home
🐏 Keep dogs on a lead - ewe's are in lamb and some early lambs are already appearing

📍 Simonstone Hall | #YorkshireDales #Weekend

Really interesting to read how these city-run 'Rental Ripoff' hearings in NYC are working >>>

A blue and green tent is set up on a pathway next to a brick wall covered in graffiti. Trees and greenery surround the area. The Guardian UK article headline reads: "Homelessness: Record number of rough sleepers in England last year, official figures show." Subheading mentions 4,793 people slept rough on a single night in autumn, a 3% increase from the previous year.

Figures out today show that homelessness in England is soaring, while England lost nearly 4,000 social homes last year.

The Government must deliver more social housing, bring empty homes back into use & unfreeze housing benefit before more people lose their homes.

https://bit.ly/4b1j5LY

Record levels of rough sleepers in England, figures reveal There were 4,793 people sleeping on the streets on a single night last autumn.

Number of people sleeping rough in England has reached another peak 💔

4793 single night snapshot last autumn and highest numbers since records began.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Kate McCauley, Housing Rights CEO pictured next to a quote that reads "In our written evidence to the Inquiry, we emphasised the importance of ensuring that our response to the homelessness crisis moves from reactive to proactive. Evidence from our services shows us that preventing homelessness is not only possible, but also that is in the best interests of people, families, society as a whole and of course- the public purse, because it saves money in the long term.”

Housing Rights welcomes today’s Public Accounts Committee report on homelessness in Northern Ireland and the actions for which the Department for Communities and the Northern Ireland Housing Executive are responsible. This reform has been a key priority for us since 2016.

We're very concerned by the new figures from @centrepointuk Homelessness Databank showing that almost 124,000 young people across the UK faced homelessness in 2024/25 - an increase of 6% on the previous year.

Are you passionate about disability justice? So are we!

We have two opportunities to join our amazing team, campaigning on either disability poverty or housing equality. Closing 15th March.

Find out more 👇

We have Class Charts and it's very variable. I got an email last week congratulating my son on 'no negatives' last week (it was half term!). The app seems to log me out more frequently than any other app I have.

National Public Housing Museum Voted 1 Of America's Best New Museums A year after opening, the Near West Side museum is No. 3 on USA Today's list of the country's best new museums, and Associate Director Tiff Beatty and her team are taking a victory lap.

National Public Housing Museum Voted 1 Of America's Best New Museums blockclubchicago.org/2026/02/23/n... << fantastic news and well deserved 👍

It took them til 2023 to introduce the Bill (as I remember) and it was still in the Lords when the election was called. So yes, not exactly breakneck speed or strong commitment!

Disappointingly, James Cleverly has sailed pretty close to repeal in a recent interview. Especially disappointing given that ending no fault evictions had been a Conservative commitment for some time (first announced under Theresa May!) www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/sir-...

Five women authors by whom I’ve read at least five books:
- Rachel Cusk
- Annie Ernaux
- Ali Smith
- Deborah Levy
- Elizabeth Strout

Who's the billionaire behind London’s biggest mass eviction? He's the London philanthropist who says he's committed to solving homelessness. So why is Asif Aziz's Criterion Capital rushing to make hundreds of Londoners homeless in the coming weeks?

London’s “worst mass eviction in recent history” is underway; hundreds of households across London told to get out of their homes this week by the same landlord, ahead of the renters rights act. The landlord? Billionaire Asif Aziz’s Criterion Capital. www.londoncentric.media/p/asif-aziz-...

Book 7 of 2026.

Grief, trauma, relationships, family. Beautifully written, interesting format.

4⭐

#BookSky

Agreed 🤝

Tiramisu 🤮

First project to use the fast track for affordable housing that Eric Adams’s charter review commission put on the ballot in November, Mamdani endorsed, Open New York and other housing advocates pushed for, and voters approved 💪

Graphic has dark blue border on white background. NPR’s logo is at the top middle. The NHLP logo sits at the bottom. The title of the article and author name are below: “HUD rule could push families with undocumented immigrants out of their homes by Jennifer Ludden” Text reads: “The Department of Housing and Urban Development wants to ban families with any member who is undocumented from living in federally subsidized housing. A proposed rule also would require local housing authorities to report any tenant not eligible for rental aid to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. "Trump's proposal runs contrary to federal law and is designed to instill fear and hardship on immigrant families," Shamus Roller, executive director of the National Housing Law Project, said in a statement. "His administration deflects blame for the housing crisis onto immigrants so they can continue dismantling HUD's hallmark and lifesaving housing programs."”

Thanks to Trump’s new proposal, some immigrant families may need to decide whether to split up to stay housed, or face eviction and homelessness together. NHLP’s Exec. Director @shamusroller.bsky.social dug deeper with @npr.org’s Jennifer Ludden:

NACCOM Annual Conference 2026 Celebrating 20 Years of Welcome, Activism and Solidarity

A taster of what's in store at our 2026 Annual Conference...

⏩ Looking at different housing models to build a deeper understanding of what works
⏩ Exploring what organisational resilience means
⏩ Tackling what effective NRPF support looks like

Book now:

To celebrate #CareDay, Chloe Mae from our Youth Editorial Board, shares her story of being in foster care and why she wants to see change within the care system.

Find out how to get involved and celebrate Care Day with us!
https://bit.ly/4aYZmNR

Generation Rent Jobs - Generation Rent Current Vacancies: Board Member vacancies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – Generation Rent Generation Rent is looking for an experienced and committed board member to join its board of direct...

JOIN OUR BOARD - APPLY BY WEDS 25TH FEB 🫵

Can you help lead @generationrent.bsky.social? We're strengthening our board with:

🏘️ Experience & networks in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (any specialism); and/or
🏡 Economists or Fundraisers (any UK nation)
www.generationrent.org/generation-r...

Email your council — Fix the Five Basics Call on your council to Fix the Five Basics.Right now, families across London are living in temporary accommodation without the basics they need to survive.Parents are trying to feed their children using only a kettle. Young people are falling behind at school because they can't get online. Families…

More than 4,000 families in Westminster are stuck in “temporary” accommodation, trying to get through daily life without the basics most of us rely on.

Email the Westminster Cabinet Member for Housing today: https://bit.ly/45RCbSK #FixtheFiveBasics

Any chance of some Santander Cycle docking stations round there? Annoying that the nearest you can get is East India DLR, and seems particularly incongruous not to have one near City Hall.

I think that's only partly true. Letwin did some thorough work on this and concluded there were lots of different markets even in the same location - varying type, design and tenure would allow for greater abosorption and faster build out, though not convinced that's happened.

sympathies from someone who grew up in Sunderland with my name when my name-sake was player-manager for Middlesbrough. The only thing worse would have been him playing for Newcastle.

“We've been in the danger zone for 40 years”

Our Chief Executive, @bentwomeyuk.bsky.social , was on Channel 5 yesterday to discuss the new Renters’ Rights Act.

Watch more:

Join our team. 2 x Policy and Campaigns Officers. Work with a leading Deaf and Disabled People’s Organisation to campaign on disability poverty or on housing. £28,750 - £36,500. Permanent role. 35 hours per week, part time can be negotiated. Deadline 15th March. More info on our website. Illustration of three people talking and working at a desk.

We're hiring!

We have two opportunities to join our team as a Policy and Campaigns Officer.

Deadline: 15th March.

More info (including BSL) on our website: buff.ly/gtYl8CC

Crisis contributed to one of the roundtables mentioned below.

The Everyone In programme had a big impact on rough sleeping in some areas, initially sheltering 35,000 people. But it also highlighted the number of people who were hidden homeless and not counted.

That's still the case today.