Coronavirus: Portsmouth council could receive slice of £3.2m fund to help the homeless self-isolate

A CITY politician has urged the government to 'act swiftly' when dishing out slices of a £3.2m emergency fund to protect the homeless from coronavirus.
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Portsmouth City Council is eligible to bid for a chunk of the cash from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to help rough sleepers self-isolate.

It is not clear yet how much each authority could receive, however, the city's housing boss, Councillor Darren Sanders, explained that the money was needed as soon as possible.

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Portsmouth City Council will bid for emergency funds to help homeless people self-isolate
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He said: 'We will be bidding for this. I would urge government to act swiftly in giving out the money and advice because this is something we need to get underway as soon as possible.

'The council has been in regular discussions with both the Society of St James and Two Saints which run the day and night services, as well as Public Health England about what to do and how we can help people who sleep rough.

'I know there are various ideas we are looking into about how to help them self isolate but we won't know for sure what we can do until we get government guidance on this.'

Communities Secretary Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP described it as a 'top priority.'

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'The initial funding that I’ve announced will ensure councils are able to put emergency measures in place to help some of the most vulnerable people in our society to successfully self-isolate,' he said.

'I would urge anyone who is concerned about someone sleeping rough to use the government’s StreetLink app to alert local support services who can reach out to those in need at this difficult time.'

Dr Yvonne Doyle, Medical Director at Public Health England added: 'People sleeping rough are often in poor health and are particularly vulnerable. That’s why this funding is so important, ensuring that rough sleepers who get symptoms have somewhere safe and protective to stay, and helping to prevent the spread of the infection.'

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