Issue - items at meetings - Rough Sleeper Strategy Update

Joint Report of the Executive Director, Adult Services and the Acting Executive Director, Environment, Development and Housing (copy attached)

20.1    The Committee considered a joint report of the Executive Director, Adult Services and Acting Executive Director, Environment, Development and Housing providing an update on the council’s rough sleeper strategy.

20.2    It was explained that the issue of rough sleeping had become more acute recently with a visibly increased presence on the streets. This not only impacted on an individual’s life chances, but also on the city’s reputation and had cost implications for public services and business. The city’s current approach needed to be re-assessed to ensure that the city’s commissioners, service providers and advocates were working in partnership to a clear strategic plan which would seek both reduce rough sleeping in the city and to improve outcomes for rough sleepers and those at risk of rough sleeping.

20.3    The Committees’ approval was sought to the approach to developing a new Rough Sleeper Strategy for the city, which aimed to ensure no one had to sleep rough in Brighton and Hove by 2020.

20.4    The Housing Strategy Manager, Andy Staniford, explained that over recent years the number of rough sleepers seen by services had almost doubled, a new estimate was to be complied towards the end of 2015 and officers were concerned that numbers would increase further due to the natural draw of the city, the impact of welfare reforms and the high cost of accessing and sustaining accommodation in the city’s private rented sector. This project would review the way that rough sleeping was currently addressed, covering the measures to prevent people sleeping rough, services provided to support people on the streets and approaches to help people move on from rough sleeping in a sustained way. Stakeholders would be involved in the review and would be encouraged to formally sign-up to the resultant strategy. An initial set of strategic priorities had been drafted in order to help shape the discussions which needed to take place and these were set out in the report.

20.5    Councillor Littman welcomed the report but found some of the language used problematic. He considered that it was important to note that there were multiple causes, changes in national policy and the level of on going welfare reform, the local authority needed to assess measures and support which could be given to seek to prevent people from ending up as rough sleepers in the first place. Councillor Gibson concurred in that view, also citing cut backs which the Council itself had undertaken.

20.6    The Clinical Commissioning Group, invitee, Geraldine Hoban, was in agreement that an integrated solution needed to be sought, using different criteria for different types of homelessness, the issue needed to be looked at its totality. It was important to seek to avoid revolving doors, where individuals accessed different services ad moved in and out of homelessness. There were many, particularly young people across the city who were “sofa surfing” due to the lack of affordable housing and who were vulnerable to homelessness and rough sleeping.

20.7    Councillor Moonan, the Deputy Chair commended the work that had been undertaken,  and expressed the view that it was important to challenge existing practices and essential to impose tight timescales for action. It was also good to hear about good services which existed whilst acknowledging that more needed to be done to join them up.

20.8    The Chair, Councillor Daniel noted that a number of cuts had been made by the previous administration. Whilst agreeing with what had been said it was important to note that this work could not be carried forward by this Committee, or indeed, the Council on its own. It was important to speak to users and other experts in seeking sustainable solutions.

20.9    The Chair put the recommendation to the vote.

20.10  RESOLVED – That the Committee gives its approval to the approach outlined in the report.