Starts at Home day celebrations

Cornish housing association joins the campaign for more investment in supported housing services

Residents, volunteers and colleagues at Coastline Housing held events to celebrate the importance of supported housing services and joined with others across the country to call on the government for sound and stable funding for these services in the future.

Homeless clients at Chi Winder in Pool cooked up a storm on the BBQ and invited visitors and key stakeholders from the community into the purpose-built homeless centre to see the sorts of vital services delivered there every day.

This includes crisis accommodation, move-on accommodation, access to a GP, showers, laundry, courses and numerous other help and advice services.

Meanwhile, residents and guests at the landlord’s accommodation for homeless families in Redruth marked the day with lunch, cake and the creation of a new fairy garden complete with plant pots, mushrooms and miniature ladders. It’s hoped that children and their families will be able to add to this project over the coming months and years, providing something full of joy and hope for any future guests at this accommodation.

Louise Beard, Deputy CEO of Coastline Housing, said: “Having a safe and secure home is one of the most important things in life. For many people though, this is not enough and they need a wraparound support service to enable them to live an independent and fulfilling life.

“Supported housing services need to be a vital part of any national housing strategy that’s introduced by the new government moving forwards and that is why we are so keen to promote the difference supported housing services make to people’s lives day in, day out.”

A celebration event also took place at Miners Court, Coastline’s Extra Care scheme where customers live independently in 64 self-contained flats with help from an on-site care and support team.

Customers decorated the scheme with home-made decorations they had been working hard to prepare and all enjoyed coming together to take part in some singing and dancing along to music provided by a local entertainer.

Louise adds: “Cornwall has an ageing population and this is why Extra Care schemes and other support services for people who are older and may become less independent are so vitally important. These services help people to stay healthier and more independent for longer.

“Without services like these, thousands of people across the country could go without the support they need, costing the public purse and leaving people who could live independently with support facing long stays in care homes or even hospitals.”

Anyone wishing to learn more about Coastline’s Homeless and Extra Care support services and how they can be accessed can visit the landlord’s website.