Fighting homelessness, in your area and beyond

• We helped 8,698 people and families in London in 2018/19.

• One of our housing advisers, Deborah, recently received a thank you letter from a client who was forced to leave her hostel. She was pregnant at the time and facing domestic abuse. Thankfully, Deborah could help her find a settled home, and ensured she was supported throughout her pregnancy. Our client said: ‘I honestly don’t want to end the journey with my adviser, but all my problems are solved, and it makes me happy to know there are good workers out there – especially in these circumstances.’

• Did you know that, in Hackney alone, there are over 3,000 households in temporary accommodation? Many of them are living in unsuitable, unsafe, and cramped conditions. We created a local Temporary Accommodation Action group to help combat these issues. So now residents and community organisations are taking the lead on the changes we want to see and how we campaign.

• You can keep up to date with what’s happening by following our London hub on Twitter.

• We helped 3,153 people and families in the Birmingham area in 2018/19.

• During the coronavirus pandemic, we’ve been worried about the wellbeing of our more vulnerable clients. We’ve been calling them to make sure they are okay, and we've delivered food and other essentials they need to help them rebuild their lives. We couldn’t do this without your support.

• We also co-ordinate the No Wrong Door Navigator programme, which is for people living with housing issues and severe mental health problems. It ensures that, throughout their recovery, they’ll have someone by their side who can provide the support they need to sort out their housing situation.

• You can keep up to date with what’s happening by following our Birmingham hub on Twitter.

• We helped 2,784 households in the Lancaster area in 2018/19.

• One young man we worked with called our Lancashire team when he hadn’t eaten for days; he had no money and didn’t know what to do. We arranged a food voucher for him via the local food bank delivery service, and for him to get a takeaway and hot drink while he waited for his food parcel. At the end of the call, he just cried. He didn’t think there were any kind people still out there.

• We also recently helped a client who had left her abusive husband. She had been sofa-surfing at her daughter’s house but had to leave – and didn’t have anywhere else to stay. She had no money for a deposit and had been furloughed from her job. Together, we found her a place to rent and helped her apply for a grant for her deposit and upfront rent. She’s now in her new home, where she feels happy and safe. But without us – and your help – she felt she wouldn’t have had any other options than to live on the streets.

• You can keep up to date with what’s happening by following our Blackburn hub on Twitter.

• We helped 1,169 households in the Bournemouth area through 2018/19

Trigger warning: thoughts of suicide

• One of our more recent clients was going through a divorce, and then, on top of that, lost his home and suffered a mental-health breakdown. He slept in his car during the height of the coronavirus lockdown, unable to shower or even get a hot drink. He was thinking of taking his life, but fortunately, he contacted us. We spoke with his Mental Health team and talked to the council to help him get a place to stay. When we called to see how he was doing, he said: ‘You don’t understand, you saved my life.’

• Keep up to date with what’s happening by following our Dorset hub on Twitter.

If you’re experiencing similar feelings to our client, you can call the Samaritans day or night on 116 123 to talk.

• We helped 1,074 people and families in the Bristol area in 2018/19.

• Since the coronavirus pandemic began, we’ve been working with local food banks to get food to people who need it. And our support workers are there for clients who are isolated and worried about the situation. One of them told us the difference it makes, knowing you aren’t alone in the world: ‘I can’t believe that you are still available to me – everywhere else seems to be closed, or I can’t speak to them.’

• And recently, our community organiser Daisy worked with local renters to create a ‘Home Truths’ mural on Stokes Croft. This allowed Bristolians to speak out on the inequalities of private renting – the unaffordable rents, disrepair, growing risk of losing your home, and discrimination.

• You can keep up to date with what’s happening by following our Bristol hub on Twitter.

• We helped 1,578 people and families in the Liverpool area in 2018/19.

• And, while we help individuals, learnings from the partnership will also help challenge systemic issues around homelessness and offending across Merseyside.

• You can keep up to date with what’s happening by following our Liverpool hub on Twitter.

• We helped 5,217 people and families in the Manchester area in 2018/19.

• One client, Kevin, had been renting a place for 13 years. He had a lovely home with his cats but, when the rent went up, he couldn’t afford it anymore. Manchester council wouldn’t help him, so he ended up on the streets. Kevin had struggled with alcohol over the years and life on the streets made it much worse. When he was referred to us, Kevin was a broken, lonely man – but since then we’ve helped Kevin secure his own flat and access ongoing alcohol support services.

• He’s determined to recover and is so grateful for the help he received. Now, we’re working towards finding him a new kitten, too! And to give back, he even began volunteering in a nearby community centre – helping others living in poverty or loneliness.

• Our Entrenched Rough Sleeper Service offers long-term, holistic support to people who have lived on the streets for two years or more. A participant-led service, we tailor how, where, and when we deliver this help to everyone’s individual needs.

• You can keep up to date with what’s happening by following our Manchester hub on Twitter.

• We helped 1,546 people families in the area in 2018/19.

• And since the coronavirus pandemic began, we’ve been working with local food banks to get food to those who need it. We’ve also been providing mobile phones with credit to clients with whom we couldn’t keep in touch, so we can be there for them when they need us.

• One client we’ve helped, Sarah, fell ill and was off work for a while. This left her with a small amount of unpaid rent, and her housing provider decided to evict her. Sarah was very worried about her home when she came to us, but we helped her negotiate terms to pay back the arrears – without leaving her homeless or being out of pocket. When we got in touch three months later, she was back at work and happy in the knowledge her home was secure.

• You can keep up to date with what’s happening by following our Newcastle hub on Twitter.

• We helped 1,196 people and families in the Norfolk area last year in 2018/19.

• One young client we helped was already sofa-surfing when lockdown for the coronavirus pandemic began – and it was taking its toll. Moving between houses, and sometimes walking the streets all night left him too scared to sleep. When the local council refused to accommodate him, our solicitor stepped in to challenge it in the courts. Our client won, and the council was ordered to find him somewhere to stay. Now he can sleep easy.

• We’re also involved in the Norwich Financial Inclusion Consortium. A collaboration between national and local charities, it gives our clients access to the different services they need as easily as possible. Our hub manager says it means clients ‘don’t feel like they’re being handed off’.

• You can keep up to date with what’s happening by following our Norwich hub on Twitter.

• Having been in custody several times in the past, our client, Alice, was self-destructive and struggling with mental-health problems. She asked us for help to break the reoffending cycle and to be a good mother to her daughter. Alice was accepted into the Housing First programme to help her get back on her feet.

• And before her release, she had secured a flat, with funds for furniture, as well as ongoing community support! This calmed her anxiety and gave her a base close to her family. It’s allowing Alice to focus on reconnecting with her daughter and starting to take care of her again.

• One of our clients, Joe, was about to be released from prison and didn’t have anyone on the outside to help him find his feet. He didn’t trust that our team would be able to help him, having been let down by other services before, so refused our help. One week from his release, Joe was facing homelessness. He finally sat down and opened up to our resettlement worker, and told us he’d spent the last five years in and out of prison.

• He didn’t feel hopeful about having a bright future if he returned to his home town, knowing that past problems and associates waited for him. So, working with Joe, we helped him get a place in supported accommodation. He couldn’t believe it! Joe was over the moon to have somewhere to live on release and to have the head start he needed to achieve his goal of securing a social tenancy of his own.

• Often people involved in the criminal justice system are at risk of losing their tenancies. This makes it difficult for them to resettle back into the community and build new lives for themselves upon release. That’s why we’re working in prisons and communities across the north of England, advising people serving prison or community sentences on housing and debt issues.

• We worked with over 14,000 people in 2018/19 as part of our partnership with probation services. We cover Merseyside, Cheshire & Greater Manchester, Humber, Lincolnshire & North Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Northumbria. We have also have local community teams in Lancashire and Northumbria.

• We helped 902 people and families in Devon in 2018/19.

Trigger warning: thoughts of suicide

• Recently Philomena, one of our hub advisers, was supporting a young man who was sleeping rough. He had no credit on his phone, was struggling, and had recently felt suicidal. He got in touch with us late in the evening and, that same night, Philomena helped him get a room in a bed and breakfast and offered to refer him to the First Response Crisis Team. She also advised him to contact his GP for a referral to the Plymouth Community Mental Health team.

• Later, he told Philomena that he was feeling much better about his situation, and had a job lined up in the North. He has a friend there, and feels ready to move on.

• You can keep up to date with what’s happening by following our Plymouth hub on Twitter.

If you’re experiencing similar feelings to our client, you can call the Samaritans day or night on 116 123 to talk.

• We helped 1,949 people and families in the South Yorkshire area in 2018/19.

• We’ve been offering extra care to clients who need it since the coronavirus pandemic began. We've delivered essential food parcels and worked with pharmacies to collect prescriptions and deliver them to our clients. We’ve even given some clients mobile phones with credit, so they can reach out whenever they need us.

• Another client, Tia*, came to Shelter with her three children; they had fled domestic abuse. They had no income, nowhere to live, and were hungry. We helped Tia make a homeless application, find somewhere to stay, and gave the family some food. And, because they were vulnerable, we kept in touch with Tia to help them get settled. We also helped Tia access health services and legal help and get her kids into school. Lastly, she had a visit from our Do It Yourself adviser to help her make their new place feel like home.

• You can keep up to date with what’s happening by following our Sheffield hub on Twitter.

*Name changed to protect identity.