New social enterprise helping to house the homeless opens first property in Peterborough

The first tenants moved into the two bed property on Princes Street on Monday (January 18).

The property is the first to be leased by the Supported Housing Fellowship, who will not only provide the property but also a series of one-to-one support to help them support themselves, find work and overcome any other issues they may have.

The project was started by Abdul Khan, who has worked at a housing company throughout the pandemic, and has seen first-hand the impact it has had on the property market and those looking for a home.

Supported Housing Fellowship are now working alongside Peterborough City Council and other charities that support the homeless, Hope House and The Garden House, Peterboorugh to take in referrals.

Abdul said: “I decided to start this project because I know for a fact that there is a lack of affordable housing in Peterborough, a lack of good quality accommodation for those leaving care and in general the market is very competitive.

“There is also a lack of passion amongst landlords to let their properties to the homeless, be it because they could make more money on the open market or because of a stigma around these kinds of tenants.

“That is what we want to change, we have chatted to our landlords and reassured them and we are keen to work with as many across the city as possible to help improve housing provision.

“It was really quite emotional today seeing the tenants, and their dog, moving in and picking up the keys for their first ever property. It’s the first day of a whole fresh start for them.”

The project has also secured a six bed property in Birchtree Avenue, which will be set aside for female only residents and hopes to continue to grow its portfolio over the coming year. As part of this, Abdul will be applying to become registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Registering with the CQC will allow the project to deliver any care necessary to its residents inside their homes.

Abdul added: “There is never just one reason a person becomes homeless, it is always a variety but roughly 60 percent of the time there is an underlying health issue and we want to help our residents in as many ways as possible.”

The project is also taking donations, anyone who is interested in donating, particularly, white goods or furniture, can visit facebook.com/supportedhousingfellowship/ or contact Abdul at [email protected].