Purpose

The Cabinet Member is
recommended to:

1.    
Approve an extension to the grant funding for
Housing Related Support in relation to supported accommodation for
homeless households, funded through the Housing
Related Support Programme, to the following grant
recipients for the period 1January 2024 to 31 March
2024:

·      
Longhurst Group (formerly Axiom Housing Association)
– Hostel accommodation and drop-in services
- £141,907.50

·      
Cambridgeshire & Peterborough YMCA
– hostel accommodation
- £66,953.40

·      
Futures Housing Group
– hostel accommodation
- £15,547.32
2.    
Authorise entering into a grant agreement between the
Council and recipients of grant funding for the period 1 January
2024 to 31 March 2024.

Reasons for the decision

The focus of the Housing Related Support programme is now
on the prevention of homelessness. It includes the provision of
homeless hostels, floating outreach support and drop-in services to
vulnerable groups such as young people at risk, offenders or people
at risk of offending, young parents, victims of domestic abuse,
single homeless and homeless families, people with mental health
illness, those who are chronically excluded and people with
learning disabilities. The grant funding contributes towards the
cost of support staff providing Housing Related Support at
supported accommodation for homeless households.
 
Subject to the recommendations of this decision notice
being agreed, the grant recipients that will receive Housing
Related Support grants are:
 

Longhurst Group (formerly Axiom Housing Association) –
Peterborough Foyer, New Haven and Fair View Court hostels housing
97 people and providing drop-in services for young people, young
people at risk, young parents, individuals who are under licence
with the probation service and refugees.
 

Futures Housing Group - Mayors Walk Hostel and move-on flats
supporting 26 people with medium support needs.
 

Cambridgeshire & Peterborough YMCA – The Cresset Hostel
for 82 single homeless people with medium/low support needs and
Time Stop for 22 young single homeless people with high support
needs.
 
A review of Housing Related Support across Peterborough
and Cambridgeshire was completed in 2018. The removal of
ring-fenced funding and ongoing financial pressures resulted in a
reduction of funding allocated to the programme. With the recent
challenges brought about by the cost-of-living challenges and
increases in homelessness, especially from single applicants, there
was a need to review this provision once again. It was the
council’s intention to undertake a competitive procurement
exercise during 2022/23 to commission and award long term contracts
which would facilitate more stability for planning and re-modelling
purposes and to introduce robust performance monitoring on the
delivery of Housing Related Support in relation to supported
accommodation for homeless households. Following the council
undertaking financial resilience work and contracts review, the
procurement process planned for 2023/24 has been deferred. In order
to maintain funding for a further period, contracts need to be
extended from 1st January 2024 to 31st March
2024.
 
The recommendations in this report will ensure continuity
of Housing Related Support up to end of March 2024 and ongoing
provision of supported accommodation for homeless households whilst
the long-term solutions are implemented.
 
Housing Related Support is provided for vulnerable people,
often with complex support needs either in an accommodation-based
setting, through drop-in support or through floating support
provided by outreach workers. Our evidence shows that the Housing
Related Support provided through the homeless hostels plays a
significant role in helping to reduce homelessness in the city.
Drop-in and floating support reaches hard to engage groups,
assisting people with complex and entrenched needs, often living
chaotic lifestyles.
 
The Homelessness Act 2002 sets out the Council’s
powers to meet the aims of the act and its duties towards homeless
people.
 

Alternative options considered

Cut funding completely and stop the Housing Related Support
funding to grant recipients. This was rejected due to the adverse
impact on the provision of hostel accommodation and homeless
prevention and the unavoidable consequence of increase in Temporary
Accommodation and overuse of Bed and Breakfast provision.