Bracknell Forest gets over £1m to fight homelessness this year
Today’s boost, announced in with the new National Plan to End Homelessness, gives Bracknell Forest over £1m to tackle rough sleeping across the borough.
Labour has set out its bold new strategy to end homelessness across the southeast. Backed by £3.5 billion of investment over the next 3 years – including around an extra £85,000 for Bracknell Forest – Labour’s National Plan to End Homelessness will support the most vulnerable people to find their feet and improve their lives.
The Plan has three key pledges to be achieved by the end of this parliament – to halve the number of long-term rough sleepers, end the unlawful use of B&Bs for families and prevent more households from becoming homeless in the first place. It will be underpinned by clear, ambitious goals for lasting change, including a duty on public services to work together to prevent homelessness, a boost to the supply of good-quality temporary homes, and £3.5 billion – a £1 billion funding boost over and above previous commitments – to support rough sleeping and support services.
Peter Swallow MP said the Labour Government is taking the action needed to end the “moral stain of homelessness”, which more than doubled under the Tories.
Welcoming the Labour Government’s homelessness strategy, Emma Haddad, Chief Executive of St Mungo’s, said: “The homelessness strategy published today is a watershed moment and is strongly welcomed by St Mungo’s.”
Meanwhile, Blabir Kaur Chatrik, Director of Policy and Prevention at Centrepoint said: “we have seen record levels of youth homelessness so it’s very welcome to see government looking at young people specifically.”
Launching the plan Housing Secretary Steve Reed said:
“Homelessness is one of the most profound challenges we face as a society, because at the heart, it’s about people. Families deserve stability, children need a safe place to grow, and individuals simply want the dignity of a home.”