Homelessness has been rising steadily over the last five years and latest figures estimate that 4.1 million people are now homeless in Europe. Publishing its EU Employment and Social Situation Quarterly Review in June 2012, the European Commission pointed to the impact of the recession on job losses and with many people experiencing a decline in income, this has contributed to the growth in homelessness across the EU, with young people and foreign nationals being disproportionately affected. Consequently, with homelessness continuing to remain a significant problem, housing deprivation is an issue that urgently needs to be addressed alongside policies targeting social exclusion.Acknowledging the homelessness problem, in September 2011 the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling for an EU homelessness strategy. With this resolution the European Parliament highlighted the importance of the key issues and the need for co-ordination and support of Member States' policies. Building on previous work at EU level, there is a need for an integrated approach to tackle homelessness and in July 2012, the European Council called on the Member States and the Commission to work on adequate schemes in order to address the problem.With 2013 being the European Year of Citizens, it is appropriate that a focus is placed on the homeless, who are among the most marginalised in local communities. As such, the roundtable meeting in March between EU Ministers on homelessness agreed 6 principles that will inform such policy across Europe:Develop and share knowledge and best practiceCore elements for responseFundingCommon Reference FrameworkResearch, innovation and data collectionImplementation and monitoringFollowing the recent publication of European Commission's Social Investment Package and its strong focus on homelessness, this timely International Symposium will facilitate policy discussion to combat homelessness in Europe. Common understanding of the nature and causes of homelessness, and shared understanding of the potential solutions will contribute towards successful policy intervention. Co-operation between Member States can impact positively to the development of homelessness policies and delegates will have the opportunity to address the underlying issues around poverty, equality and social justice.