The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) conducted the second street count of rough sleepers on 18 July 2025. There were 496 rough sleepers counted, a slight decrease of 6.4% from the 530 counted in the 2022 single-night count.
2 Following the single-night street count, a survey of 128 rough sleepers was conducted in July and August 2025. Dr. Harry Tan (Policy Lab, Institute of Policy Studies) and Emeritus Professor Ho Kong Chong (Yale-NUS Urban Studies Programme and Department of Sociology and Anthropology, National University of Singapore) provided expert advice for the single-night street count and the survey.
Addressing Complexities Leading to Long-Term Rough Sleeping
3 Findings from the survey presented key challenges faced by rough sleepers. Disagreements with family or cohabitants was the most common reason for rough sleeping, cited by half of those surveyed. Difficulties in maintaining and securing stable housing and financial issues were other reasons for sleeping rough. This was similar to our findings in 2022. Most respondents had sought help from community partners and government agencies, for housing and financial support. However, most remained unreceptive to shelter options due to concerns over lack of privacy and personal space.
4 A separate longitudinal study on long-term homelessness conducted by Dr. Harry Tan found that shelter support had a positive effect on the ability of those experiencing long-term homelessness to access stable long-term housing. Further, the median duration of homelessness for those surveyed who spent most of this period rough sleeping was four times as long as that for those who spent most of this period in shelters. Social work intervention and referrals to relevant support services were key enablers in helping participants exit homelessness. Taken together, findings from the two reports show that shelter support can play a role in facilitating exits from homelessness.
5 The Report on the Street Count of Rough Sleepers 2025 can be found on the MSF website. You can also learn more in the Report on Ending Long-term Homelessness by the Institute of Policy Studies.
New Grant and Shelter Enhancements for Rough Sleepers
6 To strengthen support for rough sleepers and the homeless, MSF will launch a $450,000 ‘Partnership to Tackle Homelessness’ (PATH) Fund. The Fund will support collaborations with organisations to trial innovative solutions which address the underlying causes of rough sleeping and help rough sleepers work towards housing stability. Organisations can apply for grant funding to trial initiatives to provide support (such as medical, psychological and social support) for rough sleepers from 1 April 2026.
7 MSF has also partnered with two Transitional Shelters run by New Hope Community Services, namely Transit Point @ Yio Chu Kang and Transit Point @ Jalan Kukoh, to redesign shelter units to provide greater personal privacy and more storage space. These enhancements aim to encourage more rough sleepers to take up shelter support.
8 Addressing the complexities of rough sleeping, especially long-term rough sleeping, entails a whole-of-society effort. Building a “We-First” society means coming together to support the most vulnerable among us. The 2025 Street Count of Rough Sleepers is one example of this spirit, as it was conducted with the support of over 800 volunteers from the Partners Engaging and Empowering Rough Sleepers (PEERS) Network, the public service, and members of the public. We would like to thank everyone for their contributions.
9 MSF encourages members of the public, community partners, social service agencies, and other Government agencies to continue to rally together to co-create solutions to support rough sleepers.