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Crisis Help to Rent programmes

When the funding we received from the English Government to support Help to Rent projects ended in March 2016, we announced our own programme. This funds and supports innovative housing solutions for homeless people.

Currently we are funding six organisations across the UK to help homeless people or those who are living in temporary housing to access sustainable accommodation. 

We received just under 130 applications for this funding, so we know there is huge demand and need for this type of project. We are calling for increased support from government and the introduction of National Deposit Scheme. See Home. No less will do campaign.

The six projects we are supporting will be providing innovative approaches around sharing in the private rented or social housing sectors. As well as social lettings agencies, housing association partnerships and projects to tackle rural homelessness.

DHI Bath

Developing Health and Independence (DHI) is a charity operating in the West of England (Bristol, Bath and South Gloucestershire). It was set up in 1999 to help people out of the cycle of homelessness, social isolation and drug or alcohol abuse. Their aim is to offer people a wide range of services that help them gain control of their lives again and live independently. As part of this work they operate a social lettings agency – Home Turf Lettings (HTL).

Through the Help to Rent programme, HTL will test three approaches:

  • the viability of property investment for housing charities and social lettings agencies, buying properties to let to homeless people
  • the use of volunteers and peer supporters to support shared tenancies
  • how best to support tenants in receipt of Universal Credit to minimise rent arrears and prevent repeat homelessness.

Read more about DHI Bath's private rented access scheme.

Newydd Housing Association

Newydd is a charitable housing association that offers nearly 3,000 affordable homes for rent and sale to people where need is at its greatest in Mid and South Wales.

Newydd’s Rooms4U project will address the housing needs of single households (including single homeless applicants) on the common housing register in the Vale of Glamorgan through a central point of access to shared accommodation in both the social and private rented sectors.

About Newydd's Rooms4U project.

Arch (North Staff) Ltd

Arch is a charity operating across Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire and Cheshire East. It supports around 6000 children, young people, adults, families and professionals annually in services aimed at reducing social exclusion by ending domestic abuse, tackling homelessness and promoting social inclusion. This includes a successful private lettings scheme.

Arch will be developing a shared social housing offer over a group of social landlords, using properties that are void or hard to let as a result of welfare reforms. This will include configuring and modelling housing association properties to make them suitable for sharing.

Glasgow Homelessness Network

Glasgow Homelessness Network is a third sector membership organisation. They evidence and advance solutions to homelessness and poverty by connecting the knowledge and experiences of people who live and work with the issue.

Glasgow Homelessness Network will pilot the use of private rented accommodation to deliver a Housing First approach in Scotland. Testing whether PRS could be used to scale up the Housing First approach by offering a high quality housing intervention.

New Horizon Youth Centre

New Horizon Youth Centre runs a day centre and outreach programme supporting vulnerable marginalised 16-25 year olds most of whom are in non-priority housing need and require employability support. They are based in London.

Working in partnership with housing associations, New Horizon Youth Centre will provide shared housing for 18-25 year olds in urgent housing need. Also in anticipation of welfare benefit changes for this group, the project will offer 12 months accommodation and support to enable young people to stabilise their financial and employment situation, develop tenancy skills, and save for a deposit, before moving on to longer term housing in the private rented sector.

The funding for New Horizon Youth Centre has been provided by The Berkeley Foundation.

Hull City Council

Hull City Council will be piloting shared housing project in their own council housing stock. Employing a dedicated support worker they will be making use of larger properties and converting them into shared housing to meet the needs of people under 35 impacted by the application of the Shared Accommodation Rate in social housing.

Read more about housing from Hull City Council.

Want to know more?

We are supporting these projects so that we can test different approaches to finding housing solutions for homeless people. We will be sharing our findings widely, including all the projects successes and challenges.

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