With an estimated 50 people sleeping out on any one night in West Sussex, Stonepillow’s grant will contribute to its Housing First model in Chichester and the Arun district, which will aim to reduce the number of single homeless rough sleepers in the area.
The grant is part of a £3.5m pot to fund 21 projects from the Homelessness Transition Fund, an independent charity set up to support the government’s rough sleeping prevention plan ‘Vision to end rough sleeping: no second night out nationwide’.
Sylvie Johnston, CEO of Stonepillow, said: “Our delight in being awarded this grant is extremely difficult to express in a matter of words.
“This will enable us and our partners to make a difference to rough sleepers and break the cycle of homelessness in West Sussex.”
An £85,537 grant has also been award to Sussex Nightstop, a charity which works directly with homeless people between 16-25 years old across Sussex.
Stonepillow’s Housing First model will be run in partnership with local authorities. It will provide a hub for rough sleepers to access immediate accommodation, a platform to begin support and community integration, and referrals to the housing first hub from district council outreach teams engaging with rough sleepers who cannot access services.
A Chichester District Council spokesman said: “According to the multi-agency Rough Sleepers Panel there are 26 people sleeping rough in the Chichester District. This is partly due to the temporary closure of Chichester’s night shelter because of refurbishment.
“We are delighted that Stonepillow, one of our partner’s dealing with rough sleepers, has been awarded £200,000 for its Housing First project. We are working with authorities across East and West Sussex to implement measures to help rough sleepers, in line with the government’s ‘No Second Night Out’ project.”
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