Prince William Homelessness Battle: How Banking Apps Will Track Vulnerable Families

Prince William used his London Tech Week appearance to press the technology industry to help prevent homelessness in the UK using data from banking apps.

'Many of your customers, your clients, will be using data through banking apps, through their phones,' he said, addressing the sector's key players.

'I'm not sure you realise how much that data can be used to predict and see problems with potential homelessness before they actually arise, so that's why I think today is so important that we get that conversation started,' William appealed.

'Homelessness is not inevitable. It's entirely preventable. You guys in this room, the tech world is a huge part of this puzzle... Prevention is better than a cure and you guys have got those answers,' the Prince further added.

William Spearheads Five-Year Anti-Homelessness Initiative

William attended the event on behalf of Homewards, a five-year initiative that he and The Royal Foundation started in 2024. Aimed to address homelessness as a preventable condition, the project is now making headway with six pilot locations launched, three years after its foundation.

Demonstrating the potential of one promising methodology, William was shown a computer system containing banking data from 5.4 million anonymous NatWest customers. The bulk of that information had been merged with recent census data, which pinpointed Scottish areas where individuals had higher homelessness risks, The Mirror reported.

Linda Gibbs of Bloomberg Associates described a similar initiative in the US, in Los Angeles. Data triggers were enabled whenever someone failed to collect benefits while gaining custody of grandchildren, prompting assistance from public welfare services.

Gibbs said the system proved indispensable in preventing homelessness in the US.

Protections Against Data Abuse and Breaches

William's proposal has the potential to spur systemic change, but there's also the obvious risk of abuse of personal privacy.

Panel member Zahra Bahrololoumi of Salesforce UK and Ireland emphasised the need for legal and ethical guardrails to protect citizens. 'The Lab has the expertise to make sure that the data is used appropriately and responsibly and that's hugely important to preserve the dignity of human beings,' she assured.

Solange Chamberlain, NatWest's retail banking CEO, also outlined steps the bank has already taken to accommodate customers without fixed addresses, by letting them declare that status.

That capability was offered as an example of how banking systems can adapt to better reflect user circumstances and contribute data-driven responses.

William is Committed to End Homelessness in the UK

Acknowledging the promising demonstrations during the Homewards panel, William asked how the systems could be bolstered to handle larger data sets.

'How do we make what you've done here scalable?' he said, inquiring how the model could be used in the UK. 'I think also knowing what to do with that data afterwards is really important,' he added.

Hazel Detsiny, executive director at Homewards, clarified that homelessness prevention is a multi-sectoral effort.

'The key is that we've got to get businesses of all sorts to take responsibility and get in on this as well as the public sector and the third sector, because they've got the jobs, they've got the tech,' she said, adding that Homewards aims to support, rather than compete, with similar charities.

William's remarks underscored the urgency of Homewards' initiative, which was positively received by those in attendance. 'Prince William spoke passionately about the need for support for people,' panel host Jeff Humphrey told the audience.