Relief for rough sleepers

Wednesday December 2, 2009

As the winter nights draw in and the mercury drops closer to zero, it's easy for the majority of us to turn on the lights and crank up the central heating.

But what if you had no lights to switch on and no heating to turn up? What if your home was the doorway of a shop and your duvet was whatever you were wearing?

According to the most recent official street count for the borough
(conducted by the Department of Communities and Local Government in 2009), it shows that there were just four rough sleepers.

It's a fact that pleases officials from Hammersmith & Fulham Council, who suggest it reflects the hard work they have done to prevent rough sleeping from occurring in the first place by developing housing options for the needy.

It's also reality that is noticed at street level. Speaking from the Broadway Homeless Centre by Shepherds Bush Market, David Fisher, director of services, said a lot of work has gone into tackling the issue.

"On any one night, there were lots of people on the streets - but that has changed," he said.

"The borough now has a very low number of rough sleepers due to the resources put in to helping those with housing needs."

All people threatened with the prospect of becoming rough sleepers are provided by the council with a range of housing options including access to the private rental sector via a rent deposit guarantee scheme or help to maintain their current tenancy.

This can include mediating between young people and their parents and carrying out home improvements to protect women at risk of domestic violence.

In fact, 400 households were helped into the private rental sector last year and 450 will do likewise in the next 12 months.

This system sees each household having more choice and flexibility regarding exactly where they live.

This successful early intervention has meant that the number of people assessed as homeless has also dramatically fallen - from
600 five years ago to only 173 last year.

This has meant that more council homes can be used for people on the housing register.

The council also has the fifth best performance in London in meeting the Government's temporary accommodation target.

Council officials believe that getting to the root of the problem quickly has also meant that they have even been able to reduce the number of homeless hostels that it runs because of the sharp decrease in rough sleeping. THE leader of H&F Council Stephen Greenhalgh hails the effort to help rough sleepers as a 'success'.

He added: "This is a great success story as it proves we have been able to identify suitable housing alternatives and thereby reduce the number of people in need of temporary accommodation.

"Early intervention is the key. We are determined to get to the root of the problem before it leads to rough sleeping.

"The council has been very successful in placing the majority of homeless households in better and well-managed self-contained homes in the private rented sector.

"It makes no sense to have empty hostel places. The hostel vacancy rate was 21 per cent before and we have got this down to 14 per cent now.

"Money used from selling underused homeless hostels is ring-fenced and we are able to use these funds to significantly improve the remaining seven hostels that we continue to run."

These positive results have meant that the council has been able to open a dedicated hostel for teenage mothers, called Spring Cottage.

This means homeless teenage mothers have supervised supported accommodation in a proper mother and baby unit.

In fact, the council's rough sleeping prevention policy has been so successful that it is one of just 11 authorities nationwide selected by the Government as an enhanced housing options pilot linking housing, education, training and employment together and seeing homeless people in the round and not just as a housing applicant.

The council is also required to showcase its work to other local authorities. The most common factors associated with rough sleeping are family breakdown and loss of job.

The council also makes a significant investment in local voluntary agencies that work with the street homeless.

One such charity is St Mungo's, a national homeless charity based in Hammersmith. It said that 70 per cent of its client base reported that loss of job was a factor in their becoming homeless.

The charity, which runs a supported housing project for people with mental health issues in the borough, said a third of all rough sleepers had recognised mental health needs, such as bi-polar disorder or learning disabilities.

These mental health issues also prevent people from getting out of rough sleeping because of the difficulty in accessing the right services, the charity said.

Bosses at the Broadway said another key factor associated with rough sleeping is people coming out of a background of care, prison or the military.

Around 10 per cent of all homeless people come from these backgrounds, charities estimate.

In fact, the council works in partnership with the Probation Service to jointfund a housing officer whose job it is to find housing options for people about to be released from prison in a bid to stop the pattern of reoffending.

"There are also a large number who have a history of mental health problems, substance misuse, or both," said Mr Fisher.

"Another common situation is people who do not have the support networks of friends and family in place to help when traumatic events or large transitions happen in their lives."

St Mungo's works with homeless people and attempts to get them back into mainstream life.

It begins by admitting people into one of its council-funded emergency shelters where they are assessed for their health needs as well as whether they are in contact with any members of their families.

A stay at the charity's emergency shelters typically lasts around four weeks before the person is found an appropriate place to go on to next.

This is often a long-term hostel where a homeless person might spend up to two years so they can have a chance to engage properly with the place where they live.

The charity then tries to address the issues which made someone homeless in the first place before getting them into their own home, or supported housing if that is more appropriate.

St Mungo's said 96 per cent of the people it houses are unemployed, although not all are unskilled.

But the homeless 18-25 age group may never have been employed and the charity also acts as a signpost for literacy and IT programs, as well as NVQ courses to give young people the skills they need to get a job.

"If people are to recover from having to sleep rough and regain independent lives as citizens within their neighbourhood, they have to have access to education, training and work opportunities," said Cliff Dymond, St Mungo's area manager for Hammersmith and Fulham.

"We couldn't do much of our work across London without the help of supportive local councils," he said.

Broadway, with the aid of the council, operates three hostels in the borough; Market Lane and The Coninghams in Shepherds Bush and the Old Theatre in Hammersmith.

Kevin Peters began using the Broadway Centre in March 2007 but disappeared after only four visits.

A year later, he turned up again, this time with a variety of needs including severe depression, alcoholism, health and housing.

"I had become increasingly depressed after losing my job with London Underground due to deafness in one ear and epilepsy," he said.

"I began drinking heavily and I was unable to leave my hostel accommodation for a year. In June 2008, I was hospitalised with serious head injuries after being viciously attacked in my home.

"My depression returned and my epilepsy seizures increased. I was too frightened to return to my flat or be seen in the area, so I stayed with my daughter for a few weeks.

"Even after moving back to my flat, I was still quite nervous about being around the area because of the attack."

Broadway referred Kevin to a community detox programme and helped him with an application for a resettlement grant, which was successful.

The scheme has also helped him to try and find employment again.

Following deterioration in Kevin's health, which included being diagnosed with prostate cancer and increased epilepsy attacks, Broadway referred him to its Welfare Rights team which helped him claim extra benefits.

Since using the Broadway, Kevin has also completed a 13-week alcohol course and has successfully continued to abstain.

A debt issue which emerged during his crisis has also been resolved and he now only has to pay back a small fee each month.

"I had hit rock bottom until I began accessing services at Broadway," he said.

"The centre saved my life. I came from a working background and never knew places like this existed, that is, until I lost my job.

"I was a proud man and used to earning my money. A lot of people who have lost their jobs are unaware of their entitlements and where to get help and advice."

Thamesreach is one of many charities concerned about the effect of the recession, with its inevitable consequences for jobs, on homelessness.

Project manager Andy Langford said: "We are seeing a lot more people presenting with issues around debt and job loss.

"Family breakdown is also a big factor and continues to be so although this can occur at an early age because of trauma or abuse, which can lead to a care or prison scenario."

Thamesreach helped 130 people last year, around 100 of which were rough sleepers, care leavers and other homeless groups.

The charity steps in when people turn up at housing offices and finds them temporary accommodation in B&Bs before getting them referrals to assess their long-term needs and help them through the housing process.

The remaining 30 people were in danger of losing their tenancy for various reasons and Thamesreach helped them stabilise their situations as a preventative measure before things reached a critical point.

"During the last financial year, we have found that housing services are beginning to work together better and that the council has helped to coordinate everything," Mr Langford said.

"Because of this we are starting to work with people with more complex needs. We might see an upsurge of people using our services in the near future but this is more to do with working together better."