Housing News

Bromsgrove District Council named Regional Centre of Excellence for Youth Homelessness

Our work in helping to house young people in the District has been rewarded with us being appointed the new West Midlands Regional Centre of Excellence for Youth Homelessness 2008/09.  This award recognises the work of Bromsgrove District Council and their partners Bromsgrove Youth Homelessness Forum and Bromsgrove District Council in the provision of excellent services for young people in the District.

Anna Whalen Specialist Youth Advisor from Communities and Local Government visited the Council House in September to see first hand the services that have won the Council this award.  During her time in Bromsgrove she visited the Basement drop-in centre where she met staff and young people who had called in for advice and assistance with a variety of issues.  She also visited Louise Heard and her daughter Abi in their home, which had been secured through the private tenancy scheme with Bromsgrove Youth Homelessness Forum.

Over the next year, Bromsgrove District Council and Bromsgrove Youth Homelessness Forum will be offering other local authorities the opportunity to talk to them about these services and will be promoting the development of best practice across the region.

If you would like to find out more information about this award, please contact Amanda Glennie, Housing Research and Policy Officer on 01527 881269.

Strategic Housing Team is on the way up

On the 25th February 2008, the Strategic Housing Team at Bromsgrove District Council was re-inspected by the Audit Commission.

The outcome of the Re-Inspection states that Bromsgrove District Council's Strategic Housing Service is a fair, one-star service which has promising prospects for improvement. This Audit Commission confirms that this represents a significant improvement from 2006, when the service was assessed as being a poor, zero-star service with uncertain prospects for improvement, and makes the following observations:

• The Customer Service Centre provides an effective, one-stop shop service and supports a streamlined housing advice service for customers. Services are accessible to people with physical disabilities, and customers can access advice outside normal office hours. Information about services is comprehensive and widely available, in community locations and in a range of different formats to meet different communication needs.
• The Council has improved both accessibility to supported accommodation and the quality of service provision for victims of domestic violence. It is investing its own resources in increasing the supply of accommodation to meet needs and invests significantly in grants to provide aids and adaptations to vulnerable people, which are being completed quickly.
• The strategic approach to housing has increased the supply of affordable housing and is working to overcome constraints on supply. This is clearly supported by members. It is supported by a robust research base, which is being added to, and effectively guides the Council's actions. It is using an effective range of tools to prevent homelessness, and has decommissioned poor quality hostels.

The Strategic Housing Team have formulated and are working to a thorough action plan as a result of the findings from the inspection, and are continually working towards continued improvement.  To download a copy of the report please click here.  (186.56 KB)

Pilot Nightstop Scheme offering young homeless people a safe home for the night

Since November 2007, Bromsgrove District Council have been running a pilot in partnership with Redditch Nightstop.  The Redditch Nightstop sheme has been extended to cover Bromsgrove District to offer homeless 16-17 yr olds homeless emergency accommodation in the homes of volunteers.

During their stay with Nightstop, the young person will be given support and assistance from staff to help them consider what options are available to them, so that they make informed and considered decisions about their future housing.

Redditch Nightstop has witnessed great success, demonstrated by the over 1500 nights of emergency accommodation that has been provided over the last 10 years.  It is hoped therefore that this success can be replicated, giving young people of our district a safe and secure place to go if threatened with homelessness.

Council meets National Target Two Years Early

Bromsgrove District Council has met its 2010 target to reduce the number of homeless households in temporary accommodation by 50%.  The target was achieved after the Council and Bromsgrove District Housing Trust reviewed the way that the homelessness service is delivered, and in partnership with other organisations, introduced a range of measures to help prevent homelessness and assist those who experience actual homelessness into permanent settled homes earlier.