Today the Government has published its long awaited homelessness strategy. Homeless Link, the membership body for homelessness organisations in England has issued this initial response:
Rick Henderson CEO of Homeless Link said: “Homeless Link welcomes the publication of the Government’s Homelessness Strategy, which is urgently needed given the appallingly high number of people currently facing the traumatising effects of homelessness.
“When we talk about a homelessness strategy, the statistics and funding, we must remember that we are talking about individual people whose lives have been damaged or even cut short by their lack of access to a safe and affordable home.
“The commitment to put “prevention at the heart” of the strategy is therefore highly welcome with the potential to make a real, positive difference for those at risk of homelessness. And the recognition that we need to break the cycle of homelessness through both immediate support and a longer term more radical reform is exactly what Homeless Link and our members have been calling for.
“Past failures of government to work collaboratively have undermined efforts to reduce homelessness, so the introduction of new legal duties for branches of government to work together on ending and preventing homelessness is a positive step. We will be watching closely to make sure this becomes a reality.
“As the membership body for homelessness organisations in England we are particularly pleased to see the new National Workforce Programme and the recognition it brings to the vital role of frontline homelessness staff and voluntary sector organisations. Without them none of the government’s ambitions can be achieved.
“Resourcing is also critical. The new funding is welcome, as always, considering the extremely strained financial situation of many homelessness support and prevention services. But more fundamental changes are needed to the homelessness funding model to ensure the sustainability of crucial services
“A fully collaborative and inclusive approach will be even more important as we move into the delivery phase of this strategy. We will be looking carefully at the detail of the strategy and consulting our members about it. We will also be looking at the action plan alongside it . We look forward to working with Ministers, those with lived experience of homelessness, and others in the sector to achieve our shared mission of moving towards a country free from homelessness.”
