Bedford Borough Council on LinkedIn: We have recently launched of our new strategy dedicated to addressing… (2025)

NHCEH Response to the Supreme Court’s Johnson v Grants Pass DecisionThe NH Coalition to End Homelessness (NHCEH) was extremely disappointed to learn of the Supreme Court’s decision on the matter of Johnson v Grants Pass earlier today. The criminalization of homelessness is not an effective nor humane practice in ending and preventing housing instability. It is NHCEH’s hope that municipalities in NH will continue to focus on investing in sustainable, long-term solutions to the issue of homelessness, instead of expensive, counterproductive arrests of people who have nowhere else to go.The development of affordable housing across NH is the key to ending the housing crisis in the state; according to NH Housing Authority’s 2023 Statewide Housing Needs Assessment, over 23,000 rental units are needed to meet current demand and stabilize the rental housing market. In the meantime, the need for increased eviction and homelessness prevention initiatives cannot be overstated.For those who are currently living unhoused, national best practices point to the importance of instilling connection and providing wrap-around care, rather than increasing barriers and furthering disconnection and distrust. NHCEH strongly encourages all decision makers who touch policies and practices impacting people experiencing homelessness to utilize strategies that are in alignment with the 19 Strategies for Communities to Address Encampments Humanely and Effectively, published by the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness.Today’s decision by the Supreme Court allows for the punishment of vulnerable human beings who are already experiencing the harsh reality of surviving unhoused. NHCEH remains in opposition to this approach, and will continue its mission to educate policymakers and the public about effective, evidence-based solutions and to advocate for their implementation across NH.

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Today the National Housing Federation has written to the homelessness minister Felicity Buchan, alongside Local Government Association and Homeless Link, about the amount of homelessness accommodation spaces currently at risk of closure due to a crisis in local government funding. One in five council leaders think it is likely they will have to issue a Section 114 notice, effectively declaring bankruptcy, either this year or next.Over 250 homes for people who are homeless may be lost across the country.Providing this accommodation saves money. Research for the NHF found that the average cost per person of supported accommodation was £21,000 per person per year, whereas allowing a person to remain homeless for a long period of time cost £43,000 per person per year. We need a long-term #planforhousing to end the housing crisis which includes ring-fenced funding for supported housing and support services. https://lnkd.in/eEzFZYDY

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Shelter WA welcomes the State Government’s announcement yesterday of $47.6 million in funding for homelessness services.Sustainable and sufficient funding for homelessness services has been a priority concern for Shelter WA, CEWA, WACOSS, and the homelessness sector for a number of years.The funding package announced by the State Government shows that the Premier and Minister Carey are listening and acting in response to the needs of the community.Shelter WA CEO, Kath Snell said“We warmly welcome this announcement.The sector and Shelter WA, along with WACOSS and CEWA, have been advocating for greater security in the funding of homelessness services for years, and this announcement has reassured providers that the Cook government is listening and responding to community need.”“We thank the Cook government for responding, and Minister Carey for continuing to champion and support the housing and homelessness sectors at such an urgent time.”“The certainty this package provides is crucial at a time when we are experiencing significant increased demands on service providers.”“Announcements like this give welcome comfort to those utilising the services; along with relief for those working in the sector.”“The evidence tells us that an uplift in funding is needed to match need across homelessness services and, we continue our advocacy work with government as we lead up to the state budget in May. We strongly encourage further funding for homelessness services to appear strongly in the budget.”This funding package ensures more reliable, sustainable funding which will no doubt be a relief for the sector and frontline workers, but also to those people who access these services every day.In the lead up to the 2024-25 State Budget, Shelter WA will continue working with the State Government towards ensuring that funding for homelessness services is both sustainable and consistent with need.To learn more about the announcement and to read the full statement from Kath Snell please visithttps://lnkd.in/gSQWqWzs#homelessnesswa #homelessnessfunding #homelessnesssupport #shelterwa #kathsnell #johncareymla

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Shocking levels of homelessness demonstrate the cruelty of the housing crisis, so what needs to be done?We're live at #housing2024 for the session: A place to call home, the long-term plan to end homelessness, to hear from the experts.Speaking are David Bogle , chair of Homes for Cathy; John Greaves, Places for People; Alice Lamb, LandAid; Seyi Obakin OBE, Centrepoint; chaired by Baljit Basra of Devonshires.This isn't just a moral question says Seyi, speaking of tackling youth homelessness; it's an economic question two.Homeless people die younger than the general population, he says, citing Shelter research claiming an average age of 47.A sobering point, he tells the audience that in the time it will take him to finish his talk, two homeless people will have died.The freeze on LHA rates needs to end, brining it back to 30th percentile. Also need more single properties. Going further, we need to change the affordability market Seyi says. Rents should be tied to local incomes not market rates.Lack of affordable housing is a big factor in youth homelessness, says Alice, but it's not the only one.There 700,000 empty Homes in England. More needs to be done to bring these back to use. LandAid is working with partners to in this area to help provide homes.Real Estate industry has the resources to make a difference, not just in land and property but skills and will.Not having a home is terrifying for these young people; they have hopes and dreams too, and they deserve better.David suggests the homelessness crisis is possibly worse than when Ken Loach made the film Cathy Come Home.Government funding is essential to build more homes needed to help solve this crisis, he says.Housing associations are essential to delivering new homes. They are well placed to deliver.A difficult task to crank our the 90,000 social homes needed, so it's up to the sector to lobby and make the case.There is not a solution that doesn't involve building more homes, John says.We're seeing more interest in tackling the housing crisis. Once it felt fringe, but it's coming to the fore now, though there is still a way to go.#ukhousing

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San Francisco just counted its homeless population — and the stakes are highTwo years ago, San Francisco was one of the few cities in the state torecord a declinein its homeless population. The city tallied 7,754 homeless people, marking a 3.5% overall drop from2019and a 15% drop in unsheltered homelessness, meaning people living on the street, in tents or in vehicles.Although San Francisco has added more than 1,000 temporary shelter beds over the past six years, city officials in March estimated itwould cost nearly $1 billionand require 6,000 new supportive housing units and shelter beds to end unsheltered homelessness over the next three years. More than 1,220 homeless families sought services through the city this year, and the San Francisco Unified School District estimated that 2,370 students experienced homelessness last school year, although they use a different definition of homelessness than does the city.City officials in 2022 estimated that as many as20,000 people experienced homelessnessthat year, or more than double the number of people tallied during the point-in-time count. San Francisco shelters have capacity to serve about 3,240 people.https://lnkd.in/gY59bWUe

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New Post: Homelessness crisis: ‘Major’ public consultation on issue to start in Montreal - https://lnkd.in/gcsApd52 Descrease article font sizeIncrease article font sizeThe City of Montreal is launching a “major” public consultation on tackling and finding solutions to homelessness.Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante, along with local public health and provincial officials, announced the initiative Tuesday.She said the city has heard from Montrealers and wants to involve both citizens and community organizations in the next steps.“We are seeing that more and more residents, parents, families and business owners are concerned about the way resources are planned in their area and we must do better in anticipation of increasing needs,” Plante said in a statement.Breaking news from Canada and around the world sent to your email, as it happens.The public consultation comes as Montreal, along with Quebec, faces a rising number of people living in emergency shelters or on the streets.Last year, a report found that “visible homelessness” increased by 33 per cent in Montreal between April 2018 and October 2022. The survey counted 10,000 homeless people across the province, including 4,690 in Montreal, on Oct. 11, 2022.Story continues below advertisementThe development was also announced one day after Montreal police were called to investigate the death of a man who was found lifeless in a “makeshift shelter” between buildings.The dates have not yet been set for the public consultation, but they will be announced on the city’s website in the coming weeks. Afterwards, a report with findings will be made public.— with files from Global’s Dan Spector and The Canadian Press 1:41Man living in ‘makeshift shelter’ found dead in Montreal&copy 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.Source link

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In response to the homelessness crisis, more states are diverting funds away from the preferred policies of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Citing the failures of California, which devotes more money than any other state to efforts based on HUD’s Housing First model, legislators in Florida, Georgia, and Utah took steps this year to put millions of dollars behind policies built on rehabilitation and behavioral health treatment, with the ultimate goal of independence from government support.These changes come in the wake of battles across state capitals and at the Supreme Court over whether homeless people should be allowed to camp on sidewalks. At the core of these arguments is a pervasive discomfort with how to respond to an unprecedented increase in unsheltered homelessness over the last decade. Nationally, unsheltered homelessness is up 30 percent since 2013. In some states, such as Nebraska and Utah, both the absolute number of unsheltered homeless individuals and the proportion of homeless people living on the streets rather than in shelters or temporary housing has more than doubled since then.https://lnkd.in/eh2AbjJr

While nationwide homelessness increased by 12% from 2022 to 2023, homelessness in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and its surrounding region fell 49% in that same period.Advocates in Chattanooga attribute the region’s success to several strategies, including a focus on providing housing, eviction prevention, and collaboration among service providers to target resources to vulnerable populations.While homelessness is different in every city, strategies that successfully reduce it are variations on a single theme, experts say. “The main thing is just getting people into housing,” said Steve Berg, chief policy officer at the National Alliance to End Homelessness. This sounds simple, he said, but thehousing crisisrocking U.S. cities makes that easier said than done...Berg believes that it should be cities’ responsibility to make funding available for housing development. Ultimately, he said, ending homelessness “is much less about homeless programs as it is about housing programs.”#endhomelessness #housingfirst #affordablehousing https://lnkd.in/e_UtCNHW

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Newsmakers 2023: Homelessness tops the list in Ajax this year Community concerns continue with growing number of unsheltered peopleThe Ajax newsmaker of 2023 is not the feel-good story that one might hope for to end off the year.But it’s one that has become such a big issue that the Ajax News Advertiser can’t overlook it.Homelessness has gone from existing in the background of the town to becoming blatantly obvious to everyone who visits the plaza in downtown Ajax, or drives along Harwood Avenue near Ajax Town Hall.......The Region of Durham is working hard to address the issue. Staff want to find a permanent solution, as opposed to a Band-Aid fix. The Town of Ajax has held public meetings on the issue and makes shelter usage numbers public each month.But the complex issue is not an easy one for both levels of government to address, one that sees a large number of people in need of help, and longtime residents who want to live the same lifestyle they have for decades.Both levels of government have been calling on the provincial and federal governments for more support.Between 2021 and 2022, Ajax experienced a 121 per cent increase in homelessness.https://lnkd.in/e8AUHdzx

Good news for Maricopa County as more than $46.5 million in federal funding is allocated to support local homelessness programs. Representing a nearly 30% increase from previous years, this funding surge promises additional housing and services for families experiencing homelessness in the region. The primary goal of this increased funding is to maintain housing stability for over 2,100 households and prevent displacement amid growing rent prices. While aspirations to expand permanent supportive housing services persist, the immediate focus remains on ensuring that no one loses their housing.At A New Leaf, we celebrate this significant investment in local homelessness programs. This funding boost represents a crucial step forward in our collective efforts to address homelessness and support families in need. We remain committed to working alongside community partners to provide comprehensive support and pathways to stability for our community.https://lnkd.in/gbkH5Yr3

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