The money is part of the government s Rough Sleeping Initiative to end rough sleeping across England. Councillor Robert Lawton, portfolio holder for housing at BCP Council, welcomed the £2,463,893 grant. The council says that since March 2000, along with its partners, it has helped support more than 450 people who were sleeping rough or at risk of ending up on the streets. In November 2019 the official street count figure for people sleeping rough in the BCP area was 72. The latest figure taken in March 2021, was 21. Cllr Lawton said the latest funding would help us to continue and build on the huge efforts that are taking place to help people who’ve been rough sleeping, as well as ensuring we are doing all we can to prevent people from becoming homeless in the future.
Evelyn Owusu, Deborah Phillips, Kris Tabin, Azzure Sarraute-Gabriel and Nicole Walters from the Somewhere Safe To Stay Hub team in Croydon. A homelessness hub in Croydon have spoken out on the impact of Covid-19 on their services and the need for greater government support to address the issue. The Somewhere Safe To Stay Hub are at the forefront of the actions Croydon as a borough and a wider community are taking to tackle homeless in the area. Working with Evolve Housing + Support London, they offer rough sleepers shelter but also help move them onto more stable accommodation. However, like so many institutions, the hub have seen their services severely impacted by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.