The Housing Secretary has announced 274 councils will receive emergency funding to provide accommodation for people at risk of homelessness as part of the Government’s commitment to end rough sleeping.
Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council has secured £56,000 from the Government’s Next Steps Accommodation Fund to build on the successful work already taken place since the national lockdown began in March.
Working with partners from the Basingstoke and Deane Social Inclusion Partnership, 86 households who could have faced sleeping on the streets, have been placed in safe and secure accommodation with tailored support provided. Over 750 households have been given support and advice during the pandemic.
This funding bid will provide additional support during the winter months to fund a transition and recovery worker who will help to support people as they move from the streets, through emergency accommodation and into settled homes.
The funding will be also be used to provide additional support during the cold winter months. Traditionally, the Social Inclusion Partnership has worked with volunteers from the churches to hold a winter night shelter in the coldest months of the year, during the pandemic this approach will need to be revised to protect volunteers and guests and to reduce the movement from venue to venue. This additional funding will help support those solutions to ensure the borough’s rough sleepers are given the right help and are safe and secure during the colder months of this crisis.
Maria said; “During the height of the pandemic, the Government launched an incredible national effort that found secure accommodation for the vast majority of rough sleepers, helping to protect lives and prevent the spread of the virus.
I welcome the additional funding of £91.5 million for councils, with Basingstoke awarded just over £56,000 to provide ongoing support and emergency accommodation for rough sleepers, including by helping people into the private rented sector, secure interim accommodation such as supported housing, and assess the wider support these people need in order to rebuild their lives.
This funding will ensure that vulnerable people and rough sleepers continue to have safe accommodation and the care and support they need, to ensure as few as possible return to the streets.”
Further information about announcement is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/274-councils-set-to-receive-housing-….