A PIONEERING project to combat rising homelessness in Rugby and across Warwickshire has been awarded an £855,000 Government grant.
The initiative aims to intervene before residents find themselves out on the streets – with recent figures showing homelessness in Rugby has rocketed by almost 80 per cent in two years.
The funds will support people at risk of homelessness by helping with commonplace causes like relationship breakdown, drug and alcohol abuse, mental illness and domestic abuse.
Teams of support workers and mentors at voluntary and community organisations will hold special advice sessions and point residents to support services.
Rugby Borough Council communities and homes spokeswoman Coun Leigh Hunt said tackling the causes of homelessness could reduce the number of people sleeping rough – and reduce the cost to taxpayers.
She said: “The project has pooled the expertise of borough and district councils in the county, and a range of partner organisations, to draw up plans for this radical new approach to tackling homelessness, and I’m delighted the partnership has secured funding from the Government for the next three years.”
Rugby Borough Council led a bid from the Warwickshire Together Homelessness Early Intervention Project (WTHEIP) to secure the grant.
WTHEIP comprises Rugby Borough Council, Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council, North Warwickshire Borough Council, Stratford-on-Avon District Council and Warwick District Council.
Figures released in October showed the number of homeless people in Rugby grew from just over 100 in 2013 to 179 in 2015 – with a further rise expected when statistics reveal this year’s level.
