Document Actions
Support and Supporting People
These pages provide information and resources about support and Supporting People (SP) services and funding for homeless people.
What's New? | What is Supporting People? | The Issues | Resources
What's new?
- Map of Supporting People accommodation contracts for homeless people without dependants (single homeless, rough sleepers and young people at risk) by administering authority, based on the Survey of Needs and Provision (SNAP).
- Map of Supporting People accommodation household units for homeless people without dependants (single homeless, rough sleepers and young people at risk) by administering authority, based on the Survey of Needs and Provision (SNAP).
- You can now see details of the Pathfinder project to assess the impact of delivering Supporting People funding through a non-ringfenced grant, and a list of the areas that are involved in this pilot.
- The Audit Commission is revising its guidance for housing inspectors on Supporting People. Homeless Link has responded to the consultation
- Communities and Local Government has published its strategy for Supporting People. Independence and opportunity sets out how they will be taking forward the Supporting People programme.
- Communities and Local Government has produced three papers following its seminar on Supporting People and the VCS. They are: Local Area Agreements; The national SP value improvement programme; and the Individual Budgets Project.
- Homeless Link has submitted a joint submission to the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review with SITRA and the National Housing Federation, in which Supporting People is one of three key areas.
- The resources from the SupportActionNet Conference, "Supporting vulnerable people to achieve social and emotional aspirations" are now available on the SupportActionNet website
- Free Benchmarking Service for Supported and Sheltered Housing The NHF, SITRA and Housemark have launched a second round of the free benchmarking service for providers.
What is Supporting People?
Homeless people need more than just housing. The Supporting People funding stream was launched in April 2003 and pays for housing related support to vulnerable groups, of which homeless people are one category. Committed to providing a better quality of life for vulnerable people to live more independently and maintain their tenancies, Supporting People plays a vital preventative as well as supportive role in relation to homelessness.
These services are both wide ranging and individual, tailored to needs, allowing the flexibility that has made the program such a success. Its approach is comprehensive with services available including:
- Support in establishing a suitable home
- Support with daily living skills
- Support in accessing benefits, health and community care services
- Help in establishing and maintaining social support
Support is offered through both supported housing services and floating support services. Supported housing is available as direct access; short and medium stay hostels, transitional housing and supported lodgings.
Supporting People represents the first time there has been a clear funding stream for housing related support to complement statutory services. It is mainstreamed and encourages a partnership approach, providing a vital link for many to access key services.
Key sucesses
Evaluation by the Audit Commission has showed that Supporting People has achieved four key successes:
- Greater service user involvement in planning services;
- Improvements in service regulation, quality and accountability;
- Greater strategic overview, leading to commissioning of new services where there are gaps in provision;
- Improvements in partnership working between agencies.
How and Why this is Relevant to Homelessness?
There is an established need for support to help people overcome homelessness. Homeless people often have complex and multiple needs that demand a range of support services to develop and sustain their capacity to live independently in their accommodation.
Supporting People funds the majority of support work that takes place in hostels, supported housing and by our members. It is a vital funding stream.
Despite this, some services, which play a vital role in enabling homeless people to achieve independence, have no clear funding stream and are outside of the currently applied definition of housing related support. Such services include meaningful activity, which is recognised as helping people develop self-esteem, communication skills and confidence, essential in helping people move on and live full independent lives.
The Issues
The Department for Communities and Local Government (formerly the ODPM) has published a consultation paper for users of services on how to make Supporting People better. The deadline for responses was 28 February 2006. Homeless Link responded, following a consultation with our members. A summary of responses is available on the SPKWEB.
Our submission to the consultation highlighted some key issues: * Lack of stable funding, which inhibits effective planning for service improvement and development * Relatively few new cross authority services developed * The most marginalised and excluded homeless people, people without local connection, are increasingly excluded or restricted from existing cross authority provision * The fast pace of change has presented difficulties
Resources
- The DCLG has a dedicated website for Supporting People, known as SPKWEB. It includes a Directory of SP services in England.
- BMEspark is a DCLG funded website on meeting the needs of BME clients in Supporting People services.
- SITRA - policy, training and consultancy for supported housing
- The SupportActionNet website, developed by Lemos and Crane, aims to help organisations transform policy and practice by placing the aspirations, wishes and dreams of service users at the centre of the way organisations and their staff plan and deliver support services.
- Homeless Link has produced a briefing document Supporting People – a story of success to highlight the importance of the Supporting People Programme in advance of the Government's Spending Review.
- Groundswell has published a report, Being Supported: Homeless People's views on the Supporting People Programme The report was commissioned by the ODPM (now the Department for Communitites and Local Government).
- In 2003 the ODPM published a Guide to Accommodation and Support Options for Homeless Households and research into the support needs of homeless households, with and without children.
- The Department of Health (DoH) website contains guidance to help local authorities decide who is eligible for social service support. The DoH is also piloting individual budgets, designed to provide individuals who currently receive services greater choice and control over their support arrangements.
Search for the latest on support and supporting people on the Homeless Link website.