Homelessness projects given £250K future ready boost
Innovative projects across England have this week been awarded up to £25k each to help ensure they can face future challenges in the sector and continue tackling homelessness.
Grants totalling £247,250 have been allocated to 12 projects in the final round of funding from the Future Ready Fund, which aims to strengthen and secure the future of organisations in the homelessness sector. The successful projects are diverse, but all demonstrate an effective and sustainable approach to preventing homelessness and rough sleeping.
Amongst the successful grantees is Praxis Community Projects, which will use the funding to undertake a study into best practice in providing housing and support to vulnerable homeless migrants with no recourse to public funds. The final report will make a case for more inclusive services for vulnerable migrants to ensure they do not arrive on the streets or spend a second night sleeping rough.
Another example is Changing Lives, which is leading an evaluation of five Homelessness Transition Fund supported Housing First models. This will provide evidence for the funding of future projects and ensure the continued viability of existing projects.
Commenting on the successful applicants, Samantha Rennie, Director of the Homelessness Transition Fund, said:
“With the needs of clients becoming increasingly complex and financial pressures being felt in many areas, homelessness services must be flexible and adapt in the face of these challenges. The Future Ready Fund aims to provide the financial boost that is often required for this process.
“These 12 projects were selected because they clearly demonstrated how the funding would enable them to reshape their approach to delivering critical services to remain effective and sustainable for the coming years. This is the final round of funding and we are proud to have supported so many innovative approaches to tackling homelessness.”
The Future Ready Fund has a total budget of £500K in 2013/14 which comes from the £20m Homelessness Transition Fund, an independent fund administered by umbrella organisation Homeless Link and funded by the Department for Communities and Local Government. To date the fund has made 42 grants worth over £800K to support projects towards preparing services for the future.
A full list of the grants made to date is available here.
