The City of London Corporation has committed to a £427,000 increase in funding to help tackle homelessness across the City.

The extra money follows a decision by the City Corporation’s Community & Children’s Services Committee to support new services including specialist accommodation and support services.

The funding aims to reduce long term rough sleeping and ensure that more of those who arrive new to the streets, spend no more than one night out.

A range of new services will help the City Corporation’s outreach team, led by St Mungo’s, to deal with rough sleepers who require specialist professional intervention.

The plans include the commissioning of new specialist beds for rough sleepers struggling with drug-use and mental health issues, a specialist mental health worker, outreach welfare specialist, and expanded access to detox and rehab treatment programmes.

Proposals to embed a specialist community safety officer alongside St Mungo’s outreach teams will improve identification and mapping of begging activity, meaning better targeting of outreach services to help vulnerable rough sleepers and support enforcement where outreach and engagement have been refused.

Dhruv Patel, Chairman of the City of London Corporation’s Community & Children’s Committee, said:

“Homelessness is an issue that remains a real challenge across London.

“We must reduce the risk of long-term homelessness and put an end to rough sleeping in the Square Mile.

“The City Corporation is committed to supporting people who find themselves homelessness or sleeping rough, and working closely with our partners and the Mayor of London, to identify new solutions.

“The approval of the funding will ensure that the relevant services are fully resourced to do this.”

The City of London Corporation runs a range of schemes aimed at tackling homelessness in the Square Mile, including:

• The City of London Outreach Team service, which is delivered by St Mungo’s, aims to help rough sleepers off the streets and into the support that best matches their needs, ensuring they break harmful street lifestyle choices
• The Lodge and City Lodge –innovative accommodation schemes run in partnership with St Mungo’s, designed to meet the needs of some of London’s most entrenched rough sleepers.

ENDS