‘SEEING PEOPLE SLEEPING ROUGH ISN’T RIGHT FOR OUR COMMUNITIES’
Partnership helping people affected by homelessness
A PIONEERING partnership has provided homes for more than 600 people affected by homelessness in Stoke-on-trent.
Rough sleepers across the city have been helped off the streets and into secure accommodation thanks to Destination:home.
It has seen 513 people housed and a further 151 keep their homes as a result of the partnership, which is led by homelessness specialist Concrete.
The project provides a 24/7 support service to people impacted by homelessness locally.
Data last year revealed that 1,547 households reached out to the city council for homelessness support in 2022-23, a rise of 11 per cent on the previous year’s statistics.
In the last year, Concrete – which is part of the Honeycomb Group – and the wider Destination:home partnership have launched new schemes and projects to tackle issues like rough sleeping, and complex needs such as monkey dust addiction.
Laura Dalton, Concrete’s Head of Homelessness, Housing and Complex Needs, said: “We’ve seen countless people sleeping rough, whether that’s in the doorways of local businesses, bus stops or even by people’s homes. This isn’t safe for them and it isn’t right for our communities.
“Supported accommodation, like our recently opened Vivian Culvert House, has had a huge impact in cutting down the number of rough sleepers we are seeing in our local towns. These schemes bring homeless people – including those with physical disabilities – off the streets and into a safe and warm place that they can call home.
“Our schemes are fully secure, staffed 24/7, with lots of support from a highly specialist team. The services exist to not only house individuals, but also help them to develop skills and beat challenges, such as addiction, to one day move on to an independent new chapter.
“Our mission of making homelessness history isn’t easy, but it is crucial to save the lives of people who are sleeping rough, and to improve and develop our city. We appreciate the support we have had from the local community so far, and we can’t wait to continue our vital work in the future.”
Councillor Chris Robinson, cabinet member for housing, regeneration and planning at Stoke-on-trent City Council, praised the work being done.
He said: “Facilities like Vivian Culvert House are absolutely vital in helping to support the most vulnerable members of our communities, not only by helping them into accommodation but also providing them with the wraparound care needed to help individuals deal with sometimes serious and complex issues.
“The challenges we are facing in dealing with homelessness in Stokeon-trent are no different to those facing other towns and cities across the country but where we excel is in our partnership working.
“Trusted organisations such as Honeycomb Group play a key part in helping to support rough sleepers in the city and we are extremely grateful to them for all of the fantastic work they continue to deliver in the city.”