A new joint campaign to tackle rough sleeping in Basingstoke and Deane focuses on a way that people can support ‘real change, not loose change’.

With an estimated 15 to 30 people sleeping on the borough’s streets at any one time, residents and businesses in Basingstoke and Deane are being encouraged to help make a real difference by supporting the initiative to address homelessness and rough sleeping locally.

The ‘Real Change, Not Loose Change’ campaign is raising money for local homelessness schemes and urging residents to alert homelessness services about people sleeping on the streets. It is being driven by the Social Inclusion Partnership, a group of key organisations, voluntary, faith and community groups and charities brought together by Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council as part of an innovative joined-up move to reduce rough sleeping.

The council’s Deputy Leader and Chair of the Social Inclusion Partnership Cllr Terri Reid said: “Incidents of rough sleeping have increased and unfortunately it is something that is happening all over the country. This is not something that is going to disappear.

“Many people who find themselves sleeping rough have extremely complex needs which could include drug or alcohol dependencies, therefore donating money or even food to specialist, coordinated help gives them the chance of receiving the shelter, food and the support they desperately need.”

Despite national cuts in funding for supported housing services, the borough council uses its national grant, topped up with its own money, to fund a number of initiatives to help people who are homeless and prevent homelessness. This includes the May Place homeless hostel in the Top of the Town; Mary Rose Court supported accommodation and the Joshua Tree and Oakley Lodge emergency accommodation for families at risk of homelessness.

Specialist outreach workers from the You Trust and day support services delivered by Camrose are funded to work with people at risk of homelessness or sleeping rough and the council’s community safety patrol officers support this outreach work.

And the council has invested its own money to buy homes, managed by housing associations, for emergency temporary accommodation to reduce the use of bed and breakfasts.

To meet the increasing demand the borough council has brought together emergency services; homelessness, health and mental health services; housing associations; charities, community and faith groups; voluntary organisations and local businesses through the Social Inclusion Partnership to pool resources and to coordinate the approach to tackling homelessness in the borough.

The Real Change campaign aims to support this work and show residents and businesses in the borough how they can also help to make a real difference.

Cllr Reid said: “This campaign is part of innovative work we are doing here in the borough, working together to share and contribute knowledge, expertise, time and opportunities to tackle rough sleeping and we are asking residents and businesses to be a part of this.

“Our outreach officers try to work with everyone sleeping rough on the streets, but getting them to a stage where they are ready and able to move away from that life can be a long process, often it’s not just a case of giving them somewhere to live.

“The Real Change campaign will raise awareness of how best to support the work of the Social Inclusion Partnership. We all know how heart-breaking it is to see someone sleeping rough but that person needs access to the right help and support and sometimes giving money directly isn’t the best way to help.”

People wanting to support the campaign can make a difference by:

• contacting Streetlink on 0300 500 0914 or visit http://streetlink.org.uk/ if you are worried about someone sleeping rough.
• donating time or money towards supporting local homeless charities including the Night Light winter shelter or the Camrose Centre by visiting https://www.spacehive.com/real-change

For more information on the Real Change campaign visit www.basingstoke.gov.uk/real-change.