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Manchester’s homeless: we go out to find those in need

Greater Manchester has a severe homelessness problem – and it’s getting worse. But a wide-ranging group of bodies is tackling the issue and seeing success, as Dave Power explains

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GM Homes Partnership formed out of a desire to tackle Greater Manchester’s homelessness problem
GM Homes Partnership formed out of a desire to tackle Greater Manchester’s homelessness problem
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Manchester’s homeless: we go out to find those in need #ukhousing

This year, 268 rough sleepers were recorded across Greater Manchester. This is a rise of 42% from 189 in 2016, but charities estimate that the real figure is three times higher than this.

Many social issues have combined to cause homeless rates to accelerate, including the impact across the region of Universal Credit, exceptionally high local housing authority rates, more prison-leavers with no fixed address on release and drastic cuts to the budgets of vital services including mental health.

The need to reduce and even end rough sleeping fuelled the formation last November of an innovative programme, the GM Homes Partnership. This has the broadest range of combined partners that have ever come together for a government-backed initiative of this type outside London. We established it with Trafford Housing Trust, in conjunction with funding and support from the Bridges Social Impact Bond Fund, and it is being provided by Shelter, Great Places Housing Group in Manchester and The Brick in Wigan.

The programme initially secured a social impact bond (SIB) of £1.8m from the government, but its success and the unprecedented levels of engagement it obtained from previously hard to engage participants led to it receiving an extra £829,000.

The three-year programme provides rough sleepers with the strength-based, intensive emotional and practical support they need to maintain successful tenancies, as well as help with addiction and other health issues, and supports them to access appropriate existing health, training and employment services.

In our first year, our aim was to provide support to up to 200 entrenched rough sleepers across the city, although we’ve seen more than 500 people use our services.

These are people who, historically, are difficult to engage and whose trust is hard to win.

The GM Homes Partnership works well because we go out to find participants – we don’t expect people to come to us. Our support sessions are held at locations they choose, ranging from community centres, cafés and parks to health services.

“These are people who, historically, are difficult to engage and whose trust is hard to win.”

One of our participants, a 48-year-old man from Tameside, had been living on the streets for around 30 years. He had misused drugs throughout his adult life, suffered with mental health problems that led to barriers when accessing services and spent time in prison.

After working with the GM Homes Partnership, he is now registered with a GP and is engaging with drug and alcohol services. He has recently moved into his own flat and is keen to keep up the momentum.

His family have opened lines of communication and he now has a relationship with his daughter and grandchildren.

One of the biggest challenges the GM Homes Partnership faces is providing the mental health and well-being support many entrenched rough sleepers need.

Many have to deal with unemployment, addiction and being led into a world of crime. We need our health professionals to work with the criminal justice system to ensure unnecessary jail time isn’t imposed.

“Those who are arrested for sleeping on the streets or begging are referred back to the GM Homes Partnership, so they can be supported in their community and accommodation, rather than unnecessarily sent to prison or convicted”

To help facilitate this, we decided to collaborate with community rehabilitation companies, Greater Manchester Police, prison service resettlement teams and the NHS.

We’re keen to bring together housing and justice services to work together, to divert individuals from custody through support, rather than statutory sanctions, which perpetuate reoffending.

For example, those who are arrested for sleeping on the streets or begging are referred back to the GM Homes Partnership, so they can be supported in their community and accommodation, rather than unnecessarily sent to prison or convicted.

The GM Homes Partnership will continue to find lasting solutions to tackle rough sleeping through innovation, learning and pushing the boundaries of current practice and process.

We know that this is a long-term project that will help users start a new life, in the right kind of home, with the right support.

Dave Power, group chief executive, One Manchester

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