This update should help those with a role in preventing or tackling homelessness by giving you news about the role of the team, examples of good practice, and information about new publications and forthcoming events. We want you to contribute so please send information to hatenquiries@housingcorp.gsx.gov.uk.

The HAT Team

The Homelessness Action Team (HAT) continues to spend much of our time getting out meeting with individual housing associations. There is a vast range of good practice that all of us can learn from. We have also been attending meetings on a regional basis and keeping contact with the main stakeholder organisations that work on the homelessness. We are happy to work with organisations in any way that will effectively help them to improve their approach to homelessness. We can offer to:

• Run through a broad review of an organisation’s approach to preventing and tackling homelessness;
• Complete more detailed work with organisations to review specific services areas, running through policies and procedures;
• Run workshops for staff from individual or groups of organisations to raise awareness on how to prevent and tackle homelessness;
• Facilitate meetings to bring together organisations to encourage improved joint working on homelessness; 
• Provide examples of good practice to help in the development of services.

Know your data

Many associations are now developing their homelessness action plans. An important early stage in the review of the association’s approach and current services is an analysis of the data available. You can better understand how you perform as an association compared with others but also see where the real pressures are for the local authorities that you work with. Many of you will know all of this already but here’s a short summary of the data you can easily access.

The CORE (COntinuous REcording) system collects data on all lettings made by RSLs and almost half of local authorities. Annual reports for individual landlords and local authority areas together with summary information at a regional level can be found at www.core.ac.uk/core. There is very much data available but some of the main CORE data to use is:

• Lettings to homeless 
• Nominations
• Relet times
• Household details
• Lettings in each local authority

The CORE website also includes sector wide analysis of regional variations and trends that may help to inform the work of associations.
 
The RSR (Regulatory Statistical Return) is the annual return that all RSLs provide to the Housing Corporations. Smaller RSLs only complete a short return that contains limited amount of summary information about the organisation’s stock and lettings during the year. However, larger RSLs complete a large comprehensive document that contains a vast amount of information. Some of the data available at www.rsrsurvey.co.uk that may be applicable to a homelessness review is:

• Breakdown of stock in local authorities
• Evictions
• Rejected nominations
• Temporary accommodation
• Disposals

The Performance Indicators published by the Housing Corporation at  www.housingpis.co.uk can also provide some good comparative data on issues such as rent collection performance. You can also obtain good comparative information through organisations that provide benchmarking services.

Communities and Local Government publishes the homelessness statistics it collects from local authorities through its P1E returns. These can be found by searching for homelessness statistics on the CLG website.
The P1Es give information from each local authority on:

• The use of bed & breakfast accommodation
• Homelessness applications
• Homelessness acceptances
• Reasons for homelessness
• Households in temporary accommodation.

The CLG website also includes analysis of this data to draw out themes and trends.

We can offer guidance in the information that may provide a valuable background to a homelessness action plan and how an individual organisation’s performance may compare with others. We also have a workshop session that we can run for an individual association or a group of organisations to help you to talk through these issues.

Good Examples

We continue to find many examples of different ways in which housing associations prevent and tackle homelessness. To find out more about any those listed below please contact us.
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The Bromford Group is arranging to meet all its main local authorities to discuss homelessness using a set agenda that is sent to the local authority before the meeting.
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The Accent Group administers the housing register for Tameside MBC. This has been very successful in engaging all associations, showing effective outcomes. This has now been extended to a specific approach for supported housing.
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New Charter HT realigned its housing scheme aimed at young people following engagement with a number of services at the local council.
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East Potential, part of East Thames Group, offers a number of schemes to help residents from any tenure into employment.

• Routes to work offers residents the opportunity of a two week work placement and / or the chance to work with a business mentor.
• Construct your career is designed to help those who want to pursue a career in construction through taster courses, on the job training, work placements, study towards accredited qualifications, links with contractors with vacancies and practical advice in securing a job.

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Broomleigh HA offers a joint sign-up process with its floating support service so new tenants are aware of the service should they need to access it.
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Wrekin Housing Trust runs Open Door, a private sector lettings subsidiary that has been successful in attracting private landlords and making them comfortable in letting to people one benefits, etc. Open Door has its own website.
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Family (Birmingham) HA provides funding to Birmingham Money Advice & Grants through which advice is provided to its tenants but training is provided for its staff and other benefits.
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The Harvest Group has published an article in its tenant newsletter to raise awareness on homelessness issues and how people may avoid homelessness
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The Contour Group has reported to its Board on evictions, highlighting the groups most likely to be evicted so advice and support services can be targeted.
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The Bromford Group has very low relet times due to a range of factors including visiting all those who are leaving their homes, making full use of the 28 notice period, a £50 incentive to leave the home clean and to return keys and fuel card and keys safes over the doors for contractors to use.
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AmicusHorizon runs the 'Get On' programme, designed to enable learners currently excluded from learning because of multiple barriers to gain a qualification. It builds on practical skills, improving and increasing confidence.

Can you help us?

As we meet with associations we are asked for examples how other are effectively tackling a range of issues. We are currently looking for good practice especially relating to:

• Mortgage rescue schemes,
• Procedures to assess the need for advice or support,
• The use of local lettings policies together with starter tenancies to give sustainable communities whilst also meeting the needs of homeless households,
• Under-occupation schemes, and
• Anti-poverty strategies.

Events

These are some of the events being organised that may be of interest to those working around homelessness. If you know of future events please let us know so we can include them.

NHF Annual Conference
Birmingham
19 – 21 September 2007
(All the HAT will be there 3pm to 4pm on the 20th for drinks at the Housing Corporation stand. Come and see us!)

Shelter Homelessness Prevention Conferences
Leeds, 4 October 2007
Norwich, 1 November 2007
Liverpool, 24 January 2008
Birmingham, 21 February 2008
Guildford, 5 March 2008
(The HAT is helping to run some workshops)

CLG Homelessness Summits aimed at local authorities
Preston, 19 September 2007
Newcastle, 24 & 25 October 2007
Leeds; 8 November 2007
Birmingham; 15 November 2007

East London Housing Partnership conference - Sustaining public & private tenancies
Stratford
16 October 2007

Youth led conference on preventing homelessness
Organised by St Basils in Birmingham
18 October 2007

CIoH Lettings & Homelessness Conference
Nottingham
20 – 22 November 2007
(The HAT is will be there throughout the conference)

Contact us

We ask for your input in a number of ways. If you can help us or if you would like us to meet with you please contact us.

Mark Meehan
mark.meehan@housingcorp.gsx.gov.uk
07721 375104

Gerald Wild 
gerald.wild@housingcorp.gsx.gov.uk 
07971 667119

Madeleine Jeffery 
madeleine.jeffery@housingcorp.gsx.gov.uk 
07798 588752

Nick Sedgwick 
nick.sedgwick@housingcorp.gsx.gov.uk 
07919 394910

Martin Waddington 
martin.waddington@housingcorp.gsx.gov.uk 
07980 988687

Dave Anteh 
dave.anteh@housingcorp.gsx.gov.uk 
07920 781254