Ex-rough sleepers praise pilot scheme keeping people off the streets
Former rough sleepers in Walsall have praised a pilot scheme aimed at tackling homelessness for helping them turn their lives around.
Ryan and Martin Bailey met Minister for Rough Sleeping and Housing Eddie Hughes and West Midlands Mayor Andy Street, who visited Walsall to see the success of the Housing First project.
A £9.6 million pilot was launched in the West Midlands in 2017 and has seen 515 people taken off the streets and supported across the region.
It tackles homelessness for people with multiple and complex needs and has enabled them to get better access to community support, health care and social benefits.
So far, the scheme in Birmingham has helped 175 people, in Walsall it has supported 102, with 67 helped in Coventry, 58 in Sandwell, 50 in Wolverhampton, 38 in Dudley and 25 in Solihull.
In Walsall, the pilot is run by Walsall council along with GreenSquareAccord and Walsall Housing Group (whg).
Funding for the pilot comes to an end in March next year and there have been calls for further money to be ploughed into it and enable providers to build on the success.
Ryan Millard, who is 26 and originally from Wolverhampton, found himself sleeping rough in Walsall Arboretum for six months before he joined the Housing First scheme. Before that he’d spent four years on the streets.
He said: “They are there for you when you need them. You see support you’d get from your parents when you need it. It’s not constantly all the time, they give you some space as well.
“I’ve been part of the scheme for just over two years. I was on the streets before. I asked out for some help and got that help from Housing First and they are one of the best going.
“I got in touch and got settled. I’m looking to get back into work. I passed my CSCS (Construction Skills Certificate Scheme) test last year. I’ve got certificates and training for painting and decorating.
“I can see a much brighter future from two years ago. This programme helps people who are going down a dark path but want to sort it out. It gives you a sense of purpose back.”
For 58-year-old Martin Bailey, his Housing First support worker helped stop him ending up back on the streets as he battled drug addiction.
He said: “I’ve been on Housing First for over three years ago with Alex (housing worker). He’s helped me out a lot.
“I’ve had my flat for four years. He got me a washing machine, dryer, carpets, phones me every week and asks me if I need help.
“If it wasn’t for Alex, I’d have lost my flat. The first 12 months I’d have been in it. I had three eviction notices to move out the flat and Alex stopped that.
“I was still on the gear for the first few months as I was in that flat. But I’ve been off that now for three years. They’ll help you all the way. Whatever you need they will do it for you.
“Life is brilliant now. I love my life. If it wasn’t for the scheme I would have been homeless again.”
Mr Hughes, MP for Walsall North, said they would analyse the success of Housing First when the pilot finishes in March next year.
He said: “This is the point of making visits. It is all very well reading papers given to you by a civil servant but it’s much better to hear the hands on experience of people who have lived through it.
“It’s a good use of Government money. We committed £28 million to the pilots and that sounds like a big number but when you understand the level of support that is provided and the journey you can take people through the programme then it all seems worthwhile.
“What I love about this scheme in particular is whg is largely a general needs housing provider. They don’t normally cater for more specialised support needs. They’ve engaged with this programme and seen the value of it.
“The funding continues until March next year so we’ve got an extended period there to analyse and fully understand what’s worked and what hasn’t.”
He added the Government has also committed £3 billion for schemes to help tackle homelessness for the next three years.
Mr Street said: “You have to say, it’s an incredible success. 515 people now accommodated and that’s 515 lives changed.
“The thing I really want to pay tribute to is it’s taken a lot of people from all sorts of roles to come together and make this work.
“Across all of our local authorities, across our delivery partners, Government funding and WMCA in the midst of it as well – it is wonderful team work making a difference.”
Fay Shanahan, whg corporate director of operations, said: “Really delighted to have Andy Street and Eddie Hughes here today because it is so important we have that political support for the initiative.
“The pilot finishes in 2023 and for us it would be such a shame to lose all the fantastic work that has gone into the initiative because of the lack of funding.
“We’d like people to remember removing people from the streets and giving them a home is brilliant for them as individuals but also for society.
“So lower crime, fewer emergency health requirements, people coming off drugs – all of those extra costs we see as citizens we’ve managed to remedy.
“We’ve had no evictions in four years which is amazing. I just really plead we have a continuation of the service.”
