Peterborough given £4.5 million boost to help tackle rough sleeping

Peterborough is set to get £4.5 million next year in a bid to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping in the city.

The additional funding is part of the new Government’s commitment to ensure communities get the support they need to deal with temporary accommodation and homelessness, with over £16 million allocated to councils in the East of England.

Peterborough City Council has already received a £75,000 boost to help manage rough sleeping over the Winter. The new funding will see the council get £2,500,000 as part of its Homeless Prevention Grant and £2 million to deal with rough sleeping.

Andrew Pakes MP has been working with local charities and the council to highlight the need for extra money in the city.

Speaking about the announcement, Andrew Pakes MP said: "This is a welcome boost to tackling homelessness and preventing rough sleeping in the city. Homelessness is a preventable tragedy. We need to be doing all we can to end the scandal of families turning to B&Bs, emergency accommodation or indeed, living on the streets.”

“I like to thank local partners like the Light Project, Salvation Army and many others that work tirelessly alongside the council to support families and individuals in need.”

Mr Pakes went on to express hope about the impact the funding would have on Homeless people in Peterborough.

He said: “This funding will directly transform the lives of some of my least fortunate constituents. People living the most dreadful conditions. Over the last 14 years some people will have become used to seeing out of control homelessness statistics in the news. Each statistic is a human being living through things most of us couldn’t imagine. Many will be families, struggling and sacrificing to do the best for their children. As a government, as a society, we have a duty to do our best for them.”

The funding was also welcomed by Peterborough City Council Cabinet Member for Housing and Communities, Councillor Alison Jones.

Cllr Jones said of the announcement, “Homelessness has no place in our society. During their nighttime patrol’s, our Council’s Homelessness Outreach Team provides accommodation support, food, water, mental health services, drug and alcohol counselling and sometimes most crucially, someone to listen. In doing so they have heard some of the most tragic stories imaginable and met some of the most amazing, kind, diverse and resilient people. It is their wish and mine, that we will meet less people under such circumstances. This funding will help make that a reality and it should be celebrated.”

The announcement comes a month after Peterborough received an emergency fund of £75,395 to help tackle the homelessness crisis. The further funding will be used to improve critical support services that combat homelessness within the city. The government believes that a preventative approach including measures such as abolishing Section 21 “no fault” evictions alongside the emergency funding will lead to a reduction in homelessness across the country.

Andrew Pakes MP and Councillor Allison Jones both also stressed the importance of local authorities acting swiftly and collaboratively to ensure this funding reaches those most in need, emphasising the importance of early intervention and support services.