Housing First
As well as providing thousands of homes for affordable rent, Great Places is committed to reducing homelessness and is lead delivery partner in the Greater Manchester Housing First (GMHF) partnership.
Housing First has helped 419 people from the streets into a home of their own, with 72 per cent still in their own homes. Of that number, 122 people have been in a home of their own for more than three years.
Of that number, 122 people have been in a home of their own for more than three years, an incredible achievement given that some of the people rehoused had been homeless for years.
It’s been so successful that Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, is aiming to make Greater Manchester the first Housing First city region.
But behind these statistics are people – fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, daughters, sons – who have fallen on hard times.
And the reasons people become homeless are endless. There is no one cause, and it could happen to anyone and everyone deserves support.
Housing First works on the premise that housing is a human right. It uses housing as a platform to then help people address other issues they may face to begin recovery.
People are in charge of their own recovery, given choice and understanding to give them the best chance of success.
Many people may not be with us had it not been for a lot of hard work to help them into a home of their own, along with community support.
Take the case of Penny (not her real name).
Following significant abuse when she was younger, Penny went on to abuse drug and alcohol and offend.
She was referred into the GMHF partnership in 2019 but a move away from her home town was unsuccessful. She ended up heavily pregnant and sleeping in her own car before she was arrested and sent to prison for theft in 2022. The child was later born in prison.
In 2023, she got the correct mental health diagnosis and began to engage with services and undertook courses while completing her sentence.
She was signed up for her property while inside prison and her engagement worker prepared everything for her to move into her new home for her release.
Penny is now flourishing, has letterbox contact with her three children and is hoping to grow their relationship.
Penny has taken significant steps on her recovery journey, but it could have ended so differently had it not been for the flexibility of the Housing First model and the dedication of the colleagues who work within the partnership.
Together, we are making a difference.