Extra government cash to support homeless people

Councils in East Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire are getting more money to tackle rough sleeping

Councils across East Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire are to share more than £200,000 of extra funding from the government to tackle rough sleeping.

It comes after the government boosted its Rough Sleeping Winter Pressures Funding from £10m to £30m to help councils across the country provide accommodation, hot meals and medical treatment.

Hull will get the biggest additional amount of £107,259, East Yorkshire £41,337, and North East Lincolnshire £36,000.

North Lincolnshire, which was not included in the original funding round announced in November, has received £19,599.

Announcing the additional support, homelessness minister Rushanara Ali said: "Behind every sad rough sleeping statistic, there is a person who has been let down by the system for far too long."

The announcement was welcomed by local officials.

An East Riding of Yorkshire Council spokesperson said it would help to "assist some of the most vulnerable members of our community".

"The additional funding... will not only fund emergency accommodation, but also the wraparound support offered to those who come indoors, to assist them in their recovery from street homelessness."

The extra resource would allow local authorities to find solutions to support people in a life away from the streets, North East Lincolnshire Council said.

The authority said it would work with local partners to carry out additional street outreach to identify rough sleepers and ensure support is available, along with support for those at risk of sleeping rough, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Ali said the government was "more determined than ever to turn the tide on years of failure to properly invest in our frontline services".

"That is why I am tripling the emergency funding from £10m to £30m for councils to help the most vulnerable into safe and secure housing with warm beds, hot meals, and specialist care."

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