OPINION - Florence Eshalomi: I was homeless as a child — here’s how we end rough sleeping in London

I’ll never forget being homeless as a child. The hopelessness of being stuck in temporary accommodation with my mum and sisters. Moving from place to place with our things in suitcases and bin bags. And then the huge relief when my mum finally got the keys to our first council house in Brixton, giving us a chance to put down roots in a community we love. I know that many Londoners aren’t so lucky. I got into politics to stand up for those suffering such terrible and avoidable injustices and give them a voice. Florence Eshalomi, Labour MP for Vauxhall and Camberwell GreenUK ParliamentThis is, undoubtedly, an enormous challenge. The latest homelessness figures show while there’s been a welcome drop in the number of families living in B&Bs and that more households are being helped into a home, there are still record numbers trapped in temporary accommodation.Rough sleeping more than doubled during the last Parliament, despite Conservative promises to end it by 2024. The Tories left behind record numbers of children living in temporary accommodation, with numbers spiking in their wake.So, there’s a lot to do to turn things around.And the package of support announced today, amounting to £442 million – on top of our £3.6 billion National Plan to End Homelessness - is a really significant step towards this. Andy Burnham has vowed to end rough sleepingAFP/GettyCrucially, a new offer of accommodation across England will mean that everybody in London should have a route off the streets this winter.London is also in line for funding to end long term rough sleeping altogether.This will provide secure homes and intensive help for the most complex and severe cases, with local leaders spending the money on what’s been shown to work in their area. So, as well as immediate relief this winter, there’s support beyond that to get people off the streets for good, rebuild lives, take the pressure off public services and strengthen communities. Read MoreAdd in the recent repeal of the Vagrancy Act and the ban on no-fault evictions, you can see that we’re finally tackling the root causes of homelessness and rough sleeping and moving from crisis management to prevention. The London Standard’s readers will start seeing a difference from this winter onwards. Ending rough sleeping and giving people the certainty of a roof over their head isn’t about politics for me. It’s personal.It’s what everything else is built on. And I’m so proud to be doing what I can to provide that security, stability and dignity for the people of this great city, where I found a home. Florence Eshalomi is MP for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green and Minister of State for Homelessness, Democracy, Communities and Faith