Charity boss welcomes Gosport Borough Council's homelessness action plan

GOSPORT Borough Council has reviewed homelessness in the borough - with ways of tackling it over the next five years.

Local authorities carry homelessness assessments for residents, providing either preventative or relief duty.

In the UK, between 2020/21 some 119,400 households were owed prevention duty, down 20 per cent from the previous year.

However, relief duty rose by 6.1 per cent to 149,160.

The number of rough sleepers across the country also increased by 39.4 per cent - totalling 11,580.

The picture in Gosport reflects national statistics - as initial assessments and prevention duty decreased, but relief duty saw a year-on-year rise.

Between 2018 and 2021 the council assessed 1,391 households of which 64 per cent were owed preventative duty.

Relief duty saw a moderate increase from 155 in 2018 to 191 in 2020.

Single male households make up the largest percentage of applicants owed homelessness duty - the only demographic to see an increase each year.

The council's homelessness and rough sleeping action plan suggest four key priorities: reducing current and future levels of homelessness, preventing homelessness, arranging suitable accommodation and supporting people to keep their homes.

Kate Gladders, regional director of Two Saints said: 'We welcome this Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Plan which contains actions to tackle current and future homelessness in the Borough.

'We look forward to our continued partnership with Gosport Borough Council in providing those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless the support they need to achieve sustainable accommodation and ultimately rebuild their lives for a brighter future.'

The plans received 35 comments from the public consultation, providing a mixture of positive and negative comments - some 56.6 per cent agreed with the priorities.

One comment read: ‘Have filled in reviews before but nothing seems to change in Gosport, lots of views sought but nothing changes.

‘Look at the bus station 20 years and still nothing, stop doing reviews and do something.’

On the prevention of homelessness, one resident suggested: ‘Help families who are suffering in the cost of living crisis negotiate rent reductions with private landlords and for the council to be on the side of the homeless rather than the private landlords.’

The decision to adopt the new strategy will be discussed at the council’s housing board on July 6.