Written evidence submitted by Terry Gore, General Manager of CatchingLives [HOL 112]
1) Introduction
CatchingLives is a small, homelessness charity based in Canterbury, Kent. We operate a daycentre that caters specifically for rough sleepers and the homeless and the annual Canterbury Community Shelter. We also provide an outreach service in conjunction with Canterbury City Council (CCC). We are submitting written evidence so that we can play our part in ensuring that the committee has a clear picture of the issues contributing to a growing problem.
I have worked within the homelessness field in Canterbury and East Kent since 2007 and will try to give fair reflection on the changes in both demand, and available services, that have occurred since then; with particular reference to the barriers we and our clients face, in getting off the streets.
2) Executive Summary
We will address:
3) Growth in Rough Sleeping and Demand for Services
CatchingLives has existed in it’s current form, a daycentre, since October 2009; and the number of people using our services and approaching us for help, has increased year on year since then. We saw 532 individual clients in 2015, up from 350 in 2010 (a 52% increase).
Similarly, the local area has seen a large growth in the number of rough sleepers. The official rough sleeper figures for the last 5 years, in Canterbury, are below. (I have not included 2010 because that total (3) was under the old street count restrictions)
2011 - 20
2012 - 20
2013 - 22
2014 - 38
2015 – 47
All of this is an indicator of the growing problem, but one of our biggest concerns is the growth in footfall at our daycentre in the last 12 months. The increase in the number of clients from 2014 to 2015, was 4.5% but the increase in footfall (individual visits) over the same period, was 43%. This means that clients are using our services for longer, because we are finding it much more difficult to move them off the streets quickly. The added concern is that these individuals are becoming more entrenched; leading to increased and more complex, support needs.
4) Demographic Changes
The most significant change in the demographic of our clients, over the last few years has been the increase in the number of EEA migrants who have approached us for assistance. In 2012, the figure was 9% but this has grown to 20% in 2015. East Kent is full of farms that use seasonal workers for fruit and vegetable picking but the employment conditions and wages that these workers face often mean that they can’t afford accommodation, they have no job security and they find it difficult to save any money. Many of our EEA clients also need assistance with improving their English and this, along with cultural differences, can make work with them difficult. It is also the biggest barrier to find more secure, better paid work. We can also assist people in returning to their country of origin but this assistance is rarely accepted. The changes to welfare entitlement for EEA nationals have also played a part in this increase in numbers.
5) Barriers
We utilise a number of routes to help our clients off the streets and out of a pattern of sofa surfing and staying with friends and family.
First, referral into supported accommodation: There are a number of hostels and supported across Canterbury and East Kent and we work with our clients to help them complete referral and meet any referral criteria. But these hostels have their own problems; for one, they are operating with fewer and less qualified/experienced staff than they were, even, 5 years ago. This drop in the support available means that they providers are less willing to take chances on people who would be considered “high support” or “complex”, because of the outcomes that they have to deliver to their funders. Indeed, very few of these accommodations list themselves as high support, meaning that options for entrenched and complex clients are very limited.
But that isn’t the only issue. When clients have been in these hostels (the maximum length of stay is usually 2 years) and have developed the skills to live independently, where can they move out to? In common with the hostels, we are finding it increasingly difficult to source reasonably priced, private rented accommodation that clients can afford from their Local Housing Allowance (LHA) entitlements. As a for instance, none of the lettings agencies in Canterbury will consider applications from anyone on housing benefit. This has the effect of causing a bottleneck in the hostels; residents may be ready to move out but have nowhere to move to. So even if our local authority offers rent in advance and deposits, we are unable to find accommodation, even for those with low to no support needs. This is a crisis with no solution in sight. The hostel waiting lists are getting longer with the result being more and more entrenched rough sleepers, with no prospect of anywhere to live (aside from prison). It should be noted that the local, private rental market is dominated by students. During term time Canterbury has in excess of 35,000 students attending 3 universities. This makes finding a house or flat to rent, a very difficult proposition.
Another route out of this situation is by way of a homelessness application to the Local Authority. Not many of these are successful, but those that are, will generally be for clients with significant support needs. We are always willing to continue this support but because of the price of bed and breakfast accommodation in Canterbury, these clients are always placed in less expensive areas of Kent, unable to access the support they need and that we can supply. This often results in clients vacating the accommodation and making themselves “intentionally homeless” and ineligible for any further assistance.
6) Causes
The causes are many and varied and I’m sure have most been adequately covered by other submissions (relationship breakdown, rent arrears and eviction…) but there are a couple that I would like to address. One of the particular issues we are seeing more of is of rent arrears and problems caused by the growing gap between the LHA rate and market rents. Many of the people who approach us for support, who aren’t rough sleeping, are unable to buy food, or pay bills because they have to fund the difference between the two, from Job Seeker’s Allowance (JSA) or Employment Support Allowance (ESA) payments. This can often lead to rent arrears.
The other issue is release from prison to rough sleeping. Year on year we see many of our more complex clients stuck in a cycle of prison, release, rough sleeping, offend, arrest, conviction and prison. On release we see some of them have the motivation to change, a chance to detox and the deprivation of liberty have led to a desire to break the cycle. But without somewhere to live and the necessary level of support, the motivation bleeds away. Quick intervention or a place to live on release, are vital if re-offending rates are to be cut.
Although not a cause, the reduction in outreach workers in the county have had another impact (Kent County Council have cut the funding to the Kent Outreach Service, by almost 75%) and although some of the gaps have been filled by other funding sources, there are still fewer workers and far more rough sleepers than 5 years ago.
7) What we are doing
We have, working closely with CCC, set up projects to work with the increasing number of EEA migrants. We have employed a Polish-speaking Project Worker, part-time, and now hold twice weekly English (as a second language) classes. This work is funded by the council but the project, at the moment, is limited to one year (ends September 2016). This has assisted us in getting better outcomes but needs to continue and even expand.
We are also operating an outreach project, funded via a combined application that 3 Kent Local Authorities put together (including CCC). This project focusses on 40 of the most entrenched and complex of our clients and as with the previously mentioned project, is for a year. A second year of funding will be available, but this kind of work in demanding and doesn’t offer quick results or easy outcomes; to be truly successful it has to have long term funding.
This work is happening alongside our normal work in the daycentre. We provide all of the necessities for survival on the streets, along with advice, advocacy and support. We do as much inter-agency work as we can but all services have faced up to the prospect of trying to do more with less and this had inevitably affected capacity and the support available to those who need it.
8) The necessary changes and steps to tackle a growing problem
Because there are so many issues involved in the growing number of homeless and rough sleepers, I’ll keep this as brief as I can and concentrate on the issues that affect the clients that we work with. We need to see:
9) Summary
All of the support and funding issues that have been raised in the above paragraphs are relevant and important, but the single issue that trumps them all is the availability of housing. All of the support in the world won’t help if there is nowhere for the homeless to live. And it is our opinion, from research reading and talking to colleagues in services all over the country, that this is an issue that won’t be resolved by relying on the “market” and private investment. If we don’t have quick, large scale investment of money from central government to build, truly, affordable accommodation, the prospects for reducing rough sleeping and homelessness are bleak.