A rough sleeping summit revealed the picture of homelessness in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and set out a support plan for 2025.
The summit took place in February, just weeks after the government announced its rough sleeping winter pressures funding would be tripled from £10million to £30million on 30 January.
Greenwich was awarded £3million as part of the rough sleeping initiative for 2022-2025, which was used to facilitate support workers, a navigator service and an emergency accommodation fund for vulnerable displaced people.
The borough’s assistant director for housing needs and tenancy Shaun Flook said: “I think non-homeless people are unable to identify with the actual plight of rough sleeping.
“If people could listen to the true story from a person who has experienced rough sleeping, or better still, listen to the stories of many homeless people, they might realize it truly can happen to anyone.
“A relationship breakdown, bereavement of your parents, a sudden redundancy, a serious accident – all these and more can, possibly, lead to homelessness.”
Flook mourned the lack of empathy towards homeless people, especially to those with additional needs like mental health or learning difficulties.
Data from the summit showed over the past winter, 147 people were found rough sleeping in Greenwich, and 84% of them struggled with one or more support needs, including mental health, drugs or alcohol.
In January, the government revealed 360,000 households had appealed for homelessness support in 2024.
Flook noted the biggest gaps in support for the homeless are a lack accommodation which is quickly available in the borough, plus limited non-office-based outreach workers available to help on the streets and be present from the start to the end of a person’s homelessness journey.
In his vision for a better future, Flook is advocating for a national homelessness strategy which involves all public services working together to make homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring.
Progress has already been made with the strengthening of relationships between the local authority and hospitals, and community safety and policing teams.
Flook encouraged the public to build relationships with rough sleepers as well.
Flook said: “It can be hard to resist giving cash, but it is generally recommended instead to donate money to charity and/or to ask the person if they want anything.
“The simple act of asking can make a huge difference and these acts of generosity and kindness can help people experiencing homelessness to feel humanized, healthier and happier in a situation where, sadly, they can face unbelievably negative treatment, such as verbal and even physical abuse.”
The best thing to do for a rough sleeper is to report them for help using StreetLink.
Picture credit: Free to use from Unsplash
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