Fareham: Crowdfunding project to support town's homeless

The crowdfunding project will initially support 10 homeless people in Fareham

A crowdfunding scheme to support homeless people is being trialled in a Hampshire town.

The project in Fareham uses online fundraising to pay for training, travel, and rent deposits so homeless people are able to get jobs and homes.

Set up by Fareham Borough Council, with online platform Beam, it will support 10 homeless people for one year.

Each person is given a caseworker to match them with employers and help with job interview skills and applications.

Seb Barker, co-founder and chief operating officer of Beam, said: "We look forward to working with local employers in Fareham who want to play their part in improving social mobility and hiring overlooked talent to fill skills shortages," the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) reported.

According to Beam, everyone reaches their fundraising target within an average of 16 days.

Councillor Connie Hockley, executive member for housing, said: "This is officers thinking outside the box and coming up with something really amazing.

"Hopefully, if it's successful in this first year, long may it continue."

People can be referred to the scheme through the councils' housing teams as well as other council services.