Proposals to tackle rough sleeping

The Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham speaking to a homeless man

Radical proposals have been announced in an attempt to save lives as winter draws in.

Hundreds of rough sleepers will have the chance to start a new life off the streets in a £1.8m scheme which is to be agreed between private funders, housing providers, and the public and voluntary sectors.

The newly-established Greater Manchester Homes Partnership will work with ‘entrenched rough sleepers’ – people who have regularly slept rough over the past two years and/or are well known to homelessness services – over a three-year period.

They will be given intensive support to be able to sustain a tenancy in one of 270 homes to be made available by 15 of Greater Manchester’s housing providers and two private rented sector partners. They will also be given the concentrated emotional and practical support they need to access the right kind of targeted health, training and employment services.

Emergency help will be available to rough sleepers as soon as the temperature drops below zero. Currently, local councils have a legal requirement to provide enhanced support following three nights of sub-zero temperatures.

Homelessness experts believe this new approach will save lives because rough sleepers will get emergency help much earlier than the legal minimum requires. Specific measures are decided locally in each borough, but include opening emergency homeless centres where beds, showers and support is provided.

Local councils have also agreed to grant homeless people free access to documents which are necessary to secure housing, such as birth certificates.