The Isle of Wight Council has underlined its bold and ambitious vision to end homelessness on the Island by announcing a new multi-partner service, as well as extending Sovereign Housing Association’s contract to run Foyer in Ryde.
The £1.4million a year service will specifically target single people experiencing homelessness and offer a wide range of accommodation options and support tailored to their needs.
By working closely with The Salvation Army, Southern Housing Association, Sovereign and Two Saints, the council aims to plot ‘housing pathways’ to get rough sleepers off the streets and into a place they can call home.
Councillor Clare Mosdell, Cabinet member for adult social care, public health and housing needs, said:
“We are really excited to announce this new, modern service supporting those experiencing homelessness.
“We have taken a new approach, building on the relationships between organisations and the wider system, and asking them to share responsibility for helping people to achieve their aspirations and recover from homelessness.
“The service will help the council towards its aspiration to end homelessness and ensure everyone on the Isle of Wight has a place to call home.”
Each organisation has been provided under a 5-year contract with an option to extend for a further 2 years. This will enable organisations from within the pathway and across the system to focus on working together to get the best possible services.
Meanwhile Sovereign Housing Association has been awarded a new council contract to continue to provide young people experiencing homelessness on the Island with a safe place to stay.
Sovereign has managed the Foyer — which offers 45 young people aged between 16 and 25 with a place to call home — for almost 20 years. The new contract will see the range for those young people who can be supported from 16 to 30 years of age.
Jamie Brenchley, the council’s service manager for housing needs and homelessness, said:
“At a time when affordable housing on the Isle of Wight is very difficult to access, it is vital that services are better matched to people’s needs and that we are doing all we can to encourage independence for residents, enabling them to move more quickly into mainstream housing as their support needs are met.”
Naomi Keyte, head of service at Southern Housing Group, said:
“Southern Housing Group has been providing care, support and housing to Island communities for over 30 years.
“We are thrilled to be a part of this new dynamic partnership; and supporting the Isle of Wight Council to deliver its strategic ambition for those most in need to reach their goals and find a place to call home.”
Hayley Territt, contract and performance manager at Two Saints, added:
“Two Saints are delighted to be delivering services to rough sleepers, and people who find themselves homeless.
“Our services will include outreach, housing first and supported accommodation. We look forward to working with the Isle of Wight Council, and other providers to deliver sustainable housing solutions which aim to end rough sleeping and homelessness.”
Rachel Lee, from The Salvation Army’s Homelessness Services Unit, has also said:
“Homelessness can happen to anyone for reasons including a lack of affordable housing, unemployment and poverty.
“The Salvation Army understands this and has been supporting people out of homelessness for more than 150 years.
“Our services on the Isle of Wight include Fellowship House Lifehouse in Ryde and Carisbrooke Priory Lifehouse which not only provide somewhere for people to live but also the essential care to help them move on from their homelessness.
“We are pleased to be partnering again with the council on this new and vital scheme to support homeless people on the island to rebuild their lives.”
Those people who are ‘really excited’ to announce their plans for the homeless would not be if they were then going to be living next door to them.
But, as they will be far away, and on a very good salary for placing these often troublesome people anywhere, but near them, then I guess they can be ‘really excited’
Anyone who feels different could always offer them a room?
What a waste of money, homeless people made their bed why do they deserve help? When most are on drugs or alcoholics!
You have never heard of compassion clearly, many are into criminality and are reliant on substances illegal.
But out of the many some will become good decent human beings again, who won’t use drugs or commit further crimes and those who are willing need to be helped.
The remainder – Send to France 🙂
My son is about to be homeless because his house share is up for sale and the .landlord wants everyone out so he can paint. My son works and has the money for a deposit. He .can’t find anything in Ryde Wootton area so he’s near his work as some shifts are early start and he dosent drive. My son is NOT on drugs or an alcoholic! Because I don’t want him sleeping rough he’s going to be sleeping on my floor in a sleeping bag! I’m only in a bed sit myself so don’t tar everyone with the same brush!
well said theresa
I was homeless at 18. My mum was in a mental ward, and my dad was in prison (he was an alcoholic ex-serviceman of 30 years who never recovered from The Falklands).
I had nothing. My nan had looked after me as best she could but she passed away.
Without the help, compassion, and kindness of others – as well as state support to pay for a room (£40 a week) and Income Support (another £40), I would no idea where I would have ended up. Dead probably.
25 years later, I’m a top rate tax payer, have beautiful (smart!) kids, and the happiest marriage in the world. 2 degrees… all manner of wonderful achievements.
I met a lot of ex service people on the streets. A lot of people who had suffered abuse, a lot of addicts self medicating (usually from abusive backgrounds like mine).
You’re free to be callous and cruel of course, but don’t be surprised when that’s the way the world treats you back.
Well done Jeff you deserve all the plaudits that should come your way. You are truly a model for the current homeless struggling . I’ve stopped and talked to many a homeless person both here and on the mainland. Not ashamed to say that some of their tales are horrendous and made any problems that I had insignificant to their plight . Good luck to you and your family in the future.
martin – a very short sighted view.
Imagine this….
“If I lose my job, suffer ill health and have to sell my home to pay for treatment, as it isn’t available on the NHS, move into rented accommodation because of no house anymore, claim benefits because of no job due to poor health and then find out that after six months, your landlord decides to sell the flat you are renting and serves you notice to leave at the end of your short hold tenancy. you will face the following….
As you have no job, no money and benefits are not enough to save up a deposit and pay a months rent in advance, you will be homeless at the end of your tenancy.
Homeowner, with job and cash to poor health, skint, no job and on the street in under a year.
Think about it before you look down your nose at anyone.
Even those with pots of cash, can lose it all and become homeless with just a couple of wrong turns in life.
You are never so secure in your own settings that you can be smug about someone being on the streets.
Granted, some are assholes that have put theirselves their because of their own stupidity – but society needs to have in place systems like this to help everyone else in a time of need.
With a lot more places closing down there are going to be a lot more homeless people and not everyone can get help like my son. When you work they expect you to help yourself. But even if you have the money for a deposit and rent in advance there’s not enough places coming up for rent and when they do they get snapped up very quickly. Home owners don’t seem to be renting their flats out their saleing up.
There for the grace of god go I; bet a lot of the horrible comments on here are regular church goers as well, quite often seems to be the case (I was homeless in London years ago and people have no idea.. unless you have walked in someone’s shoes, don’t cast judgement, or swap places with them for just one day out of your life; show some compassion)
Hear hear, very well said.
Councillor Clare Mosdell is ‘really excited to announce’….
ANYTHING to attempt to divert attention from her inept and total failure of an Adult Care Service which she is responsible for!
I wouldn’t trust anything that woman was involved in, she wanted to scrap free Solent travel for nhs patients as well
Whilst reading all the comments, can’t help wondering how many ‘ex’ homeless ‘come good’ though now would welcome in a random homeless person into their home now?
Likely say that it is “not their responsibility, the person may be dangerous to have in the home, and can’t afford to do so.”
Yet then why should others have the very same problems thrust on them?
For all the numerous ‘ex homeless’ ‘ex criminal’ ‘ex drug dealer’ ‘ex murderer’ etc ‘come good’, there will be countless others who will never have come good, and never will.
As only decent people comment on here, as some druggy, drunk, wife beating, s ex offender is unlikely to post or to be fully honest if they did, then we clearly get a very ‘skewed’ opinion of the real ‘truth’ to the matter.
Of course some victims are fully pleasant, of course some gone off the rails homeless can and should be helped, but we need to admit, some will be more trouble, will cost a fortune and are best left in a gutter.
Sorting the wheat from the soiled chaff is necessary before throwing more cash on costly ‘adult social care’ which we all have to pay for extra on our council tax.
You wrote: only decent people comment on here – Can anyone else be less in touch with the UK in 2020 ☹️
Hope you spoke out about the data breach at fellowship house 🙂
Whilst I advocate housing and supporting those homeless that want to be housed this should really be done at suitable locations for each individual. When homeless were housed in Sandown at the beginning of lockdown drunken anti social behaviour went through the roof and needles were found on the beach. What support or consideration will be being given to the impact on neighbours that have to tolerate regular anti social behaviour from some of the residents of these properties? Will any of this funding be going towards having more 24hr onsite care for projects – such as the Housing First scheme to support the 24/7 complex needs of their tenants (alcohol/drugs/mental health/offending)? Perhaps Cllr Clare Mosdell would like a Housing First scheme in one of the several properties she owns – if she’s not too busy cutting free cross Solent travel for certain NHS patients….?
Couldn’t agree more, that place in Fitzroy Street never had any problems when it was a dry house. Now there is shouting, swearing, antisocial behaviour and alcoholics staggering up the road to buy alcohol first thing in the morning. I’m all for housing the homeless, but those with complex needs need support and they are not getting any there