London is currently facing a homeless crisis. One in three homeless households are now in London, and homelessness is now at its highest in the capital for a decade.

Over the past five years there has been a toxic mixture of local authority cuts combined with a serious lack of social housing stock. Already, some of the local authorities we work with have been forced to cut their housing budgets by up to 70 per cent, and others are expected to follow suit in the coming year.

The figures speak for themselves – rough sleeping in London has doubled in five years. Sleeping on the streets is a dangerous and traumatising experience, and people who sleep rough will experience multiple health conditions, such as mental health problems and substance misuse.

Many of the more than 400 adults in our hostels have a history of rough sleeping. Our hostel support workers are committed to providing a stable and secure environment as they work with clients to address their needs, with the ultimate aim of breaking the cycle of rough sleeping and supporting them to move on and live independently. 

Meanwhile, our Fulfilling Lives in Camden and Islington (FLIC) service provides intensive 1-1 support for people struggling with multiple needs including rough sleeping, untreated mental health issues and alcohol or drug misuse. To bring much needed stability to the lives of these clients, we use the Housing First approach, which gives people who have experienced long term homelessness their own permanent accommodation as a starting point for working with them to tackle underlying problems.

Street Outreach in Redbridge

Working in partnership with the London Borough of Redbridge, we have developed a street outreach team to reach people across the whole borough, working more than 200 rough sleepers in 2016-2017.

 

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