New accommodation for Nottingham's male rough sleepers to go ahead

Chief executive Andrew Redfern of Framework pictured at Michael Varnam House.
-Credit: (Image: Joseph Raynor/Nottingham Post)


A new block of accommodation for men sleeping rough in Nottingham is going ahead after the project was put at risk by a budget gap of around £1.6 million. With record levels of rough sleeping being recorded in Nottingham during 2023, the city council said there was an "urgent need" for two sites of single-sex accommodation to house rough sleepers with severe needs.

Homelessness charity Framework came forward to lead on the project and the accommodation block for women is well under way. Yet the charity struggled to find a suitable site for the male building and eventually found that the cost of the work exceeded the budget it had available.

The development budget shortfall was around £1.640 million, but the work is now set to go ahead after Nottingham City Council approved grant funding of £200,000 towards the project. Homes England and central Government are also making contributions which taken together will mean the project should be complete towards the end of 2025.

Andrew Redfern, the CEO of Framework, said: "Conscious of all the pressures on the city council, we are enormously appreciative of its commitment to partnership working to tackle rough sleeping, and especially for this particular grant without which it would not have been possible for the larger scheme to proceed. It is hoped that we will be able to begin work in the autumn, for completion towards the end of 2025."

Framework recorded a total of 900 people on the streets in 2023 and the charity has described rough sleeping as rising "relentlessly" in Nottingham. Mr Redfern added: "Levels of homelessness and rough sleeping are rising across the country.

"In Nottingham, we are working closely with colleagues in the city council and with other partners to mitigate this. The city's strategic gap analysis identified the need for supported accommodation for people with high, complex or enduring needs.

"The construction of a building that will provide fifteen new, high quality units for women is well under way. This capital grant from the council, together with contributions from central government and Framework itself, will enable us to proceed with a similar project that will offer twenty units for men."

New Framework sites to have opened in recent years have included a block of eight flats in Hyson Green that was pushed to the "edge of viability" by inflation. On the importance of the new project, Nottingham City Council added: "Without this provision, the city will have very limited ability to tackle entrenched rough sleeping and the challenges this creates."