The government has confirmed that rough sleeping is to be decriminalised after 200 years, as it moves to scrap the Vagrancy Act by spring next year.

The act was introduced in 1824 to deal with rising homelessness which increased after the Napoleonic Wars and Industrial Revolution.

The government says it will repeal the act to ensure rough sleeping is no longer a criminal offence and concentrates efforts on getting to the root causes of homelessness, backed by major funding.

The Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner, said: “We are drawing a line under nearly two centuries of injustice towards some of the most vulnerable in society, who deserve dignity and support.

“No one should ever be criminalised simply for sleeping rough and by scrapping this cruel and outdated law, we are making sure that can never happen again.”

The Minister for Homelessness Rushanara Ali said: “Today marks a historic shift in how we’re responding to the rough sleeping crisis, by repealing an archaic Act that is neither just nor fit for purpose.

“Scrapping the Vagrancy Act for good is another step forward in our mission to tackle homelessness in all its forms, by focusing our efforts on its root causes.”

The government says its amendments to the Home Office’s Crime and Policing Bill will focus on real crime and not rough sleeping, with no replacement of previous legislation that criminalised people for sleeping rough.

Meanwhile, it says new targeted measures will ensure police have the powers they need to keep communities safe, including a new offence of facilitating begging for gain and an offence of trespassing with the intention of committing a crime, both of which were previously included under the 1824 act.

Chief Executive of Crisis Matt Downie said: “This is a landmark moment that will change lives and prevent thousands of people from being pushed into the shadows, away from safety.

“For 200 years the Vagrancy Act has meant that people who are homeless are treated as criminals and second class citizens. It has punished people for trying to stay safe and done nothing to address why people become homeless in the first place.

“Ending the use of the Vagrancy Act recognises a shameful history of persecuting people for poverty and destitution, something that figures like William Wilberforce and Winston Churchill warned against in their opposition to the act.

“It is of great credit to the UK government that they have shown such principled leadership in scrapping this pernicious act. We hope this signals a completely different approach to helping people forced onto the streets and clears the way for a positive agenda that is about supporting people who desperately want to move on in life and fulfil their potential. We look forward to assisting the UK government with their forthcoming homelessness strategy to do exactly that.”

St Mungo’s CEO Emma Haddad said: “The repeal of the Vagrancy Act, which criminalises rough sleeping, cannot come soon enough.

“Right now, we are supporting thousands of people who are rough sleeping; everyone facing this issue has their own heartbreaking story to tell of how they ended up on the streets – from complex mental and physical health issues to an increasingly unaffordable housing market.

“The answer is not to criminalise people for living on the streets but instead to focus on tackling the health, housing and wider societal issues that are causing homelessness in the first place.”