Council gets government cash to help homeless

Broadmead Court on St Albans Road, Northampton

A council has been given a government grant of around £3m to help house and support people with a history of rough sleeping.

Conservative-controlled West Northamptonshire Council says the money will be used to buy and refurbish 18 flats at Broadmead Court, Northampton - and deliver a support service.

The council says it will try to help people with complex needs live independently by providing specialist support.

Detail of the money and the project was outlined by officers at a recent council cabinet meeting.

'Wraparound'

Rosie Herring, the council's cabinet member for housing, told the meeting: “This service will effectively provide a wraparound service which not only addresses homelessness prevention but also aims to improve individuals’ wider personal circumstances and quality of life."

Broadmead Court, in St Albans Road, made headlines in March.

People living there in charity accommodation said they had found out through the media that their flats were to be sold off.

Joshua Chandler, who had lived there since 2018, said: "We feel as residents like we haven't been listened to."

A councillor told the cabinet meeting, on 9 July, that everyone who had been living at Broadmead Court had been found accommodation.