London Housing Foundation
Blog Posts
Working with European PartnersJuly 27, 2015 12:00 pmThe LHF is proud to support the EU10 initiative.
London has some excellent homelessness services and has been tackling the problem of homeless migrants since 8 new Central and Eastern European countries joined the EU in 2004 and had the right to travel to the UK and get work. In January 2014 two more EU countries – Romania and Bulgaria – gained these rights – bringing the total to 10 - the EU10. For the majority it will be a positive experience; reconnecting with friends or family, gaining useful and reasonably paid jobs to build a new life or support folk back home. But for some there will be disappointment, social problems, poverty and possibly homelessness.
In 2006 only 6% of rough sleepers were from central or eastern EuroRead More
The Atlas LaunchJuly 14, 2015 12:00 pmThe LHF sponsored sixth annual “Atlas of Services for Homeless People in London” has been launched.
The Atlas is put together each by the LHF to examine how the sector is changing. It gives a unique view of what is going on with homelessness service providers, commissioners and other support agencies.
The key points from this years work include:
• The number of providers continues to shrink slowly but steadily. This year we have seen a merger, a closure and a number of providers leaving the field, which now numbers 122 agencies.
• At the same time the number of hostel bed spaces has continued to grow, by nearly 2%. The number of floating support units has also grown by nearly 10%, though the number of support hours may Read More
Help the HomelessJuly 2, 2015 12:00 pmThere has been lots of talk recently about how you can actually help the homeless.
I don’t think motivation is a problem. People usually want to see an end to rough sleeping, and they generally want to live in a society where people have homes to go to. It is still recognised as a basic right.
But what can we do to help homeless people?
One London Borough tried to make rough sleeping illegal. Following the principle that if you outlaw it then you solve it, they legislated to make it against the law to sleep on the street. As you would expect they were roundly condemned and made a swift u turn. You can read more here https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/the-london-borough-that-h...
Other people have tried tRead More
Reflections on #Leadership in the #Homelessness sectorJune 4, 2015 12:00 pmBoard member Vic Rayner’s blog on Julia Unwin and Matthew Taylor’s thoughts on homelessness and leadership at Cumberland Lodge in January
The London Housing Foundation Leadership programme comes at a very important time in transition of the sector, reflects Julia Unwin of Joseph Rowntree Foundation. Next year is the 50th anniversary of Cathy Come Home – this will bring a sharp focus on the work of homelessness and housing. Julia reflects how this narrative set in train a series of actions that changed things within the sector- putting a statutory and regulatory framework around the sector which offered a stronger base to support individuals and families at risk of homelessness.
Despite the focus on street homelessness in the 80Read More
The London Homelessness Awards in memory of Andy LudlowMay 21, 2015 12:00 pmEntries for The London Homelessness Awards in memory of Andy Ludlow were brought to a close on Thursday 14th May.
These awards, sponsored by the London Housing Foundation, Shelter and London’s local authorities are run by London Councils look to recognise innovation and excellent practice in the homelessness sector in London.
The awards carry huge kudos for winning projects, and perhaps as important a significant cash sum. The winners receive £30,000, the runner up £15,000 and the third placed project £10,000. Even for big established projects this can be a big boost.
Last year the top award of £30,000 was won by Groundswell for their Homeless Peer Advocacy Scheme. At the time, John Driscol, a service user who became a volRead More
Dual Diagnosis AnonymousFebruary 17, 2015 12:00 pmThis blog first appeared on the St Mungo’s Broadway blog on November 4, 2014.
Dan Ware, Deputy Manager at our Lambeth Assessment Centre, took part in an innovative study trip this year, funded by the London Housing Foundation (LHF), to learn more about how homelessness services operate in the United States. In the fourth of a series about the trip, he writes about the importance of dual diagnosis – addressing mental health issues and substance issues together.
So here I am, sitting in a Portland Dual Diagnosis Anonymous meeting. The guy next to me says:
“Hi I’m Dave, and I am dually diagnosed.”
“Hi Dave!” replies the 10 strong group.
It’s my turn (oh no!):
“Hi I’m Dan and errr…I’m from London”
Read More
Austerity and Access: Aleks’ StoryFebruary 5, 2015 12:00 pmAleks arrived in the UK last year. He came across from his home country in Eastern Europe as there was no work, and he wanted to provide for his wife and three children. He was estranged from his wife, and had previous problems with alcohol, but he wanted to try and make amends.
At first it had started quite well. There had been a few casual labouring jobs here and there, and he had been able to send money home. He had stayed with Eastern European friends (albeit in an overcrowded flat), and had paid a bit of rent. The prospects were looking good for more work, more money, and then in a year or two there would be a chance to go home and build a better future.
But then he got ill. It started with a cough, then fevers. He would feRead More
Groundswell: Life as an Andy Ludlow Award winner – John’s storyJanuary 28, 2015 12:00 pmGroundswell’s Homeless Health Peer Advocacy Service was recently announced as the winner of the 2014 Andy Ludlow Award and received the first prize of £30,000 in October 2014.
Three months on, we asked John Driscoll, a Project Worker at Groundswell, to give us his views on what it felt like to be an Andy Ludlow winner.
After several years of homelessness, John started volunteering on the Homeless Health Peer Advocacy (HHPA) service in 2013. John was then successful in gaining a job as a Project Worker with Groundswell in 2014. This role is funded thanks to the Andy Ludlow Award prize money.
It feels like it’s been a long time since the Andy Ludlow Award Ceremony – so much has happened since then! Getting a new job at GroundRead More
