Government has announced a new £66m fund to help rough sleepers “into safe and warm accommodation and treatment services for drug and alcohol dependency this winter”.
More than 60 councils have been allocated a share of the up to £52m Drug and Alcohol Treatment Grant scheme for specialist support services for rough sleepers and those at risk, including one-to-one support and mentoring.
Voluntary, faith and community groups have been awarded grants from the £3.8m Homelessness Transformation Fund to transform shared accommodation into COVID-secure, self-contained accommodation, giving rough sleepers safe places to stay.
Additionally, up to 3,500 rough sleepers will be provided with emergency accommodation, with areas most in need of support to tackle rough sleeping invited to bid for funding from the £10m Winter Pressures Fund.
At the Budget, Rishi Sunak announced £640m investement each year over the next three years – a 85% increase in funding compared to 2019.
Minister for Rough Sleeping and Housing, Eddie Hughes, said: “Rough sleepers are some of the most vulnerable people in our society and we must help them off the streets and end the plight of rough sleeping once and for all.
“That means providing somewhere safe and warm for them to stay, and this funding will be a lifeline for thousands as the temperature drops this winter.
“We are also helping those trapped in drug and alcohol addiction and giving them the stability they need to turn their lives around.”
Minister for Care, Gillian Keegan, said: “It’s crucial we support people experiencing homelessness – particularly those wanting to break the cycle of addiction.
“This additional funding will not only help those personally fighting drug and alcohol addiction, but it will also benefit their friends, families and the communities who are also impacted by the consequences of substance misuse.
“More widely, we continue to support people without a home, including around access to vaccines throughout the pandemic, and recently announcing £16 million for pilot projects to support homeless people being discharged from hospital.”
Kathy Mohan, CEO at Housing Justice: “We’re pleased that we have for the second year running, been able to provide substantial funding for faith and community groups to provide COVID secure emergency accommodation in their local area.
“These smaller organisations are at the centre of many communities’ response to homelessness, often operating on tight budgets.
“This funding provides an opportunity for extra beds, implementing new ideas and increasing the options available to people experiencing rough sleeping.”
Rick Henderson, CEO at Homeless Link: “As the winter months approach, it’s vital organisations have the capacity to provide single room accommodation to help reduce the number of people sleeping rough, while minimising the risk of spreading COVID-19.
“Therefore, I am delighted to announce the list of grantees for this fund. I hope this winter provides a blueprint for future models of winter homelessness support, with single room accommodation becoming the norm.”
Programmes and projects to benefit from the announcement include:
- Leeds: funding a street-based psychologist, who refers rough sleepers to mental health and substance misuse services and a drop-in clinic in the city centre which also provides specialist support.
- Westminster: funding the Westminster Rough Sleepers Drug and Alcohol Service, ensuring rough sleepers can access treatment programmes. Support is also provided for rough sleepers to access education, employment, or training once they have completed treatment.
- Southampton: more staff are supporting those with complex needs and substance misuse issues and a clinical psychologist is making sure that those with mental health issues get the support they need.
- Cambridge: funding a local charity working in partnership with the council to provide 20-bed self-contained rooms for a safe place this winter and route off the streets.
- London: funding the All People All Places project that will provide support for 50 people in the winter months.
The Drug and Alcohol Treatment Grant is entering its second year and is already supporting people sleeping rough in 43 councils to access structured drug and alcohol treatment including counselling, detox and rehab services.
Rough Sleeping Drug & Alcohol Treatment Grant
| Local authority | Funding awarded |
|---|---|
| Barnet | £256,706 |
| Bedford | £263,596 |
| Birmingham | £652,329 |
| Blackpool | £345,562 |
| Bolton | £318,633 |
| Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | £267,808 |
| Bradford | £376,213 |
| Brent | £273,000 |
| Brighton and Hove | £337,623 |
| Bristol, City of | £539,500 |
| Cambridge | £380,944 |
| Camden | £328,759 |
| Cornwall | £623,569 |
| County Durham | £91,960 |
| Coventry | £263,939 |
| Croydon | £555,500 |
| Derby | £166,576 |
| Doncaster | £173,443 |
| Dorset | £250,820 |
| Ealing | £601,384 |
| Enfield | £425,422 |
| Hackney and the City | £709,874 |
| Haringey | £343,473 |
| Hillingdon | £221,305 |
| Islington | £287,559 |
| Kingston upon Hull, City of | £321,739 |
| Kingston upon Thames | £366,554 |
| Lambeth | £404,187 |
| Leeds | £444,315 |
| Leicester | £409,420 |
| Lewisham | £309,120 |
| Liverpool | £589,104 |
| Luton | £228,000 |
| Manchester | £621,704 |
| Middlesbrough | £214,917 |
| Milton Keynes | £270,958 |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | £170,250 |
| Newham | £436,030 |
| Northamptonshire | £393,125 |
| Nottingham | £370,056 |
| Oldham | £254,564 |
| Oxford | £426,200 |
| Peterborough | £377,136 |
| Plymouth | £165,500 |
| Portsmouth | £497,047 |
| Preston | £383,458 |
| Reading | £435,061 |
| Redbridge | £286,428 |
| Richmond upon Thames | £185,000 |
| Rochdale | £141,650 |
| Salford | £383,259 |
| Sheffield | £376,378 |
| Southampton | £248,308 |
| Southend-on-Sea | £228,184 |
| Southwark | £336,469 |
| Stoke-on-Trent | £373,173 |
| Tower Hamlets | £563,051 |
| Waltham Forest | £183,455 |
| Wandsworth | £285,800 |
| West Sussex | £180,441 |
| Westminster | £1,238,968 |
| Wigan | £385,922 |
Homelessness Transformation Fund
| Local authority | Project | Funding awarded |
|---|---|---|
| Bedford | King’s Arms Project | £144,393 |
| Manchester | Caritas Diocese of Salford | £98,504 |
| Westminster | Cardinal Hume Centre | £40,000 |
| King’s Lynn and West Norfolk | King’s Lynn Winter Night Shelter | £81,199 |
| Leicester | One Roof Leicester | £82,850 |
| Medway | Kings Church – Caring Hands in the Community | £100,000 |
| Ipswich | Selig Suffolk Trust | £85,952 |
| Calderdale | Christians Together Calderdale | £157,596 |
| Birmingham | St Anne’s Hostel | £68,640 |
| Worcester | Maggs Day Centre | £92,437 |
| Cornwall | Cosgarne Hall | £97,500 |
| Harborough | Falcon Support Services | £92,930 |
| Newham | NEWway Project | £95,388 |
| Southwark | Robes Project | £92,420 |
| Ealing | Hope for Southall Street Homeless | £42,350 |
| Camden | C4WS Homeless Project | £95,388 |
| Maidstone | Maidstone Churches Winter Shelter | £36,661 |
| Manchester | Barnabus | £85,342 |
| Hyndburn | Maundy Relief | £27,300 |
| Canterbury | Catching Lives | £23,291 |
| Medway | Medway Night Shelter | £48,620 |
| Harrow | FirmFoundation | £64,689 |
| Chesterfield | Pathways of Chesterfield | £42,140 |
| Reigate and Banstead | Renewed Hope | £22,491 |
| Leeds | West Yorkshire Destitute Asylum Network | £20,000 |
| Cambridge | It Takes A City | £65,000 |
| Bradford | Hope Housing | £50,000 |
| Folkestone | Folkestone Rainbow Centre | £59,126 |
| Peterborough | Light Project | £52,587 |
| Haringey | Highway of Holiness | £92,092 |
| Westminster | West London Mission | £66,082 |
| Dover | Dover Outreach Centre | £30,000 |
| Southwark | The Outside Project | £70,640 |
| Bedford | SMART CJS | £84,983 |
| Tower Hamlets | This is GrowTH Ltd | £96,298 |
| Bromley | Bromley Homeless | £75,050 |
| Luton | NOAH Enterprise | £79,982 |
| Rugby | Hope 4 (Rugby) Ltd | £15,000 |
| Camden | women@thewell | £17,300 |
| Derby | Derby City Mission Ltd | £100,000 |
| Waltham Forest | Forest Churches Emergency Night Shelter | £80,630 |
| Gravesham | Gravesham Sanctuary CIO | £42,700 |
| Bristol | InHope | £89,430 |
| West Lancashire | West Lancashire Crisis & Information Centre | £62,037 |
| Weymouth | The Bus Shelter | £29,484 |
| Peterborough | Hope Into Action UK | £88,000 |
| Hackney | Hackney Doorways | £14,280 |
| Barnet | Together in Barnet | £95,388 |
| Buckinghamshire | Wycombe Homeless Connection | £28,000 |
| Greenwich | Greenwich Winter Night Shelter | £76,790 |
| Eastbourne | Kingdom Way Trust | £18,788 |
| Tameside | ANEW Approach CIC | £50,640 |
| Bexley | Bexley Winter Shelter | £55,200 |
| Swindon | Swindon Night Shelter | £36,995 |
| Northumberland | StopGap Supported Housing | £32,000 |
| Haringey & Enfield | All People All Places | £82,493 |
| Reading | Faith Christian Group | £30,000 |
Author: Mark