Help sought for £1.6m shortfall in rough sleeper accommodation in Nottingham

People sleeping rough in Nottingham city centre
-Credit: (Image: LDRS)


More housing for Nottingham rough sleepers is moving closer after the council and Government agreed a funding deal. Framework Housing Association is building two urgent housing projects to help homeless people with the most severe problems.

Urgent housing for women is going forward, but there’s been difficulty in finding a site for male rough sleepers. A proposed site has been located but would cost £1.6m more than originally budgeted.

Nottingham City Council has agreed to provide £200,000 towards the cost, if the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government provides the rest. The accommodation would be for those with several severe issues, such as addiction or mental health problems.

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A recently published report says Chief Executive Sajeeda Rose has approved the transfer, with support from Councillor Jay Hayes (Lab), the portfolio holder for housing and planning. “These people are difficult to house in any other way than via an intensive support unit,” the report says.

Not providing the facility would mean “an unmet need" for one of the most vulnerable groups of citizens in the city. “Without this provision, the city will have very limited ability to tackle entrenched rough sleeping and the challenges this creates,” it adds.

While the council won’t save money on putting up homeless families in B&Bs, it may reduce the cost of policing and dealing with anti-social behaviour. The £200,000 will only be required if Framework and the government can get the rest of it together.

It comes from a pot in which tenants in shared equity housing schemes have bought out the council’s share, returning the money invested. The council has a legal duty to house homeless families but frequently has to turn to expensive hotels and B&Bs as its own temporary accommodation is full.

Housing homeless families was predicted to cost the authority £6.7m this financial year – far outstripping its £4m budget. An average of 120 homeless families applied to the authority for housing every week in January.