Mansfield rough sleepers drops to ten according to official tally but more cases may be on the way

An annual street count on October 12, 2021, found 10 rough sleepers in the district, there were seven in 2020, down from 22 in 2019, with 17 counted in 2018 count and 15 in 2017.

The council claims the latest low numbers reflect its efforts to prevent people becoming homeless, and work with partner organisations to provide accommodation and specialist support services.

The count was carried out by Framework's Street Outreach Team and independently verified by Homeless Link

However, councillors will hear today (Friday) that the authority's housing department is expecting to deal with more homelessness in the coming months when the government's ban on landlords evicting tenants during the COVID-19 pandemic ends.

A report to the council's Overview and Scrutiny Committee (Communities and Services) which met yesterday (Thursday, October 27) revealed from April, 2021 to September 2021, the homeless team dealt with 617 cases, ranging from those needing advice to those who were homeless that night, of those, 435 cases were closed after receiving advice.

One cause for homelessness is where families evicted their children (26), relationship breakdown (24) and domestic abuse (18).

The council is also discussing with the YMCA to provide self-contained winter accommodation, in place of shelters. Framework’s Street Outreach Team and the council’s Housing Solutions team continue to ensure rough sleepers and anyone facing homelessness are aware of the referral process for a bed.

Coun Marion Bradshaw, Portfolio Holder for Safer Communities, Housing and Wellbeing, said: “The First Steps Project is a real beacon of success in helping those with the most complex issues.”

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