What's new?

This page hopes to keep you up to date with what Homeless Link and its partners are doing in the East of England. If you ahve any news you want to share contact the Regional Manager.

• Government pledge to end rough sleeping by 2010

On the 18th November the Department of Communities and Local Government launched a new rough sleeping strategy: "No One Left Out – Communities ending rough sleeping".

No One Left Out is a 15-point action plan developed with the help of Homeless Link to deliver advice and assistance, prevent the flow of people onto the streets and support those already there into stability off the streets.

The strategy highlights thr role of Homeless Link and particularly its regional managers in working with local authorities to promote innovation, improve data recording and help us achieve this ambitious target. A regional seminar on the strategy is being co-ordinated by CLG and Homeless Link for January or Feburary 2009.

Click here for further details on the strategy.

• Streetlife Soccer targets stars of the future

Streetlife Soccer, a social inclusion programme run by Norwich City Football club with the help of 17 local hostels in Norfolk is preparing to host trials for the Homeless World Cup in January.

The Homeless World Cup is an annual, international football tournament drawing together homeless teams from over 48 nations across the globe. In September 2009 the 7th Homeless World Cup will be held in Milan, Italy and a national team of 8 players is yet to be selected by England team manager and co-ordinator Richard Brown from Big Issue in the North.

Regional trials will be held at Carrow Road on the 14th January 2009, 1-4pm. To ensure your clients make the most of this opportunity download a free poster and staff briefing. Staff briefing includes information on how apply.

• Salvation Army & REED in Partnership search for a new apprentice

Staff from the Salvation Army in Ipswich and REED in Partnership are launching an innovative five week employee training programme in January 2009. Based around the television show "The Apprentice" service users will be set weekly tasked aimed to improving their research skills, entrepreneurial ability and interview technique. Two teams will complete tasks which miror those in the televsion show until finally organising an employability event for hostel residents in Ipswich.

REED in Partnership have been contracted by the Department for Work and Pensions to support excluded groups in Suffolk & Cambridgeshie into work and off incapacity benefit. Garry Mills, Account Manager for REED said "our purpose here is to give people a real taste of the business environment in a fun way. We hope to build peoples confidence through the tasks, providing them with information and support along the way". They are available to provide free support and training to service users on incapacity benefit.

• Spark Challenge to reward new social enterprises

The Spark Challenge is a programme to champion and build sustainable social enterprise. It is run by three social enterprise champions (The TREES Group, Eastside Consulting and Big Issue Invest) and funded by Department for Communities and Local Government to highlight how enterprise can help the sector reduce their dependancy on traditionl charitable funding and create training and employment opportunities for their clients.

In 2008 the Spark Challenge picked 15 organisations to recieve a share of £500,000 cash and £300,000 in-kind support creating business plans, securing new investment and building partnerships with the private sector. One of the successful organisations was Luton's NOAH Enterprise whose furniture recycling business generates over £15,000 per week.

On the 10th December 2008 the competition will open its doors again, following an annoucement that they will recieve a futher £2.5m from the government!