£230m to tackle homelessness a “Positive Step”, say local charities.
Rachel Reeves' recent budget announcement will give homeless charities in Oxfordshire more autonomy to provide support for those in need.
Homeless charities in Oxfordshire have welcomed the £230m funding from Rachel Reeves’ recent Labour Government budget.
Central government funding was set to expire next March which finances programs like the Rough Sleeping Initiative allocating capital to local authorities tackling the issue of homelessness.
Laura Magawly from Oxfordshire-based charity, Homeless Oxfordshire, described this extra funding as a “positive step” as it provides local organisations with increased spending power to support those experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
According to the most recent government figures, in the financial year Apr 23 - Mar 24, 964 households were homeless in Oxfordshire during this time, and 1,766 were threatened with homelessness. This is the number of households, not single individuals, so it is thought that the figure of overall people confronted with homelessness is likely to be higher.
In the same period the previous year, 741 Oxfordshire households were homeless, and 1,350 were threatened with homelessness, demonstrating an increase over the last 12 months.
Laura from Homeless Oxfordshire described the county as “the perfect storm” for factors which may contribute towards the rise in homelessness.
She added: “A rise in no-fault evictions, a competitive job market, and cuts to funding for local services mean that someone is more likely to become homeless. And a lack of affordable/social housing and Oxfordshire being a very expensive place to live means it’s often harder for them to come out of homelessness and they often stay homeless for longer.”
Homeless Oxfordshire is the county’s largest not-for-profit provider of supported accommodation. The organisation is part of the Oxfordshire Homelessness Alliance (Aspire, Connection Support, St Mungos), a group which aims to improve services and outcomes for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness in Oxfordshire.
Those within the alliance depend very heavily on the government’s budget allocations. Without funding, they are likely to incur increased costs. Nicci Marzec, CEO of Aspire Oxfordshire, said: “Any reduction in funding will significantly impact the services and support we are able to provide.”
Some of Homeless Oxfordshire’s programs include their Pre-recovery Project, a seven-bed support house for people working towards detox and rehab, and their Women’s Project - a five-bed shared house for women only.
Oxford City Council have also activated their severe weather emergency protocol (SWEP) to provide emergency beds to those sleeping rough as colder weather approaches. The Council has secured a minimum of 41 beds in Oxford and will activate SWEP on every night the Met Office forecasts freezing overnight temperatures.
Reeves also announced that there will be a £500m boost to the Affordable Homes Programme which supplies grants to support the development of affordable housing in England.
In response to this, Laura stated: “We are glad to see the plans to boost the Affordable Homes Programme. With over 10,000 households across Oxfordshire on local authority housing waiting lists, there is a huge amount of affordable/social housing needed before this begins to markedly benefit the people we support.”
Jerry*, a resident at Homeless Oxfordshire has been directly impacted by the lack of affordable housing. He said: “I was meant to stay with Homeless Oxfordshire for around eight or nine months after rehab. But there was no suitable housing available. I ended up staying for 21 months – a year longer than expected. I couldn’t believe how long it took to bid for properties. I was ready to leave but couldn’t go. I found it very frustrating.”
According to homeless charities in Oxford, the recent budget announcement has taken some constructive steps towards ensuring the organisations that tackle homelessness have the financial backing they need. Nevertheless, there remains a desire for more governmental support in facilitating further prevention programs and housing projects for those who need them.
Find out more about Homeless Oxfordshire here.