CHILL-OUT RESPONSE TO RMBC HOMELESSNESS INTERIM REPORT

COMMMENTS ON RMBC HOMELESSNESS REVIEW INTERIM REPORT

FROM ‘CHILL-OUT’

• Overall, the Interim Report  (IR) is very good, far reaching and well researched. As it admits, some data is missing but the breadth and depth covered are comprehensive and welcome and we see little to disagree with.

• We think that an expansion of the Homelessness Forum is needed and should ideally be attended by a representative from RMBC to improve effectiveness, act as a link, provide feedback and encourage an effective, targeted range of services.

• The B&B arrangements are clearly almost wholly unfit for purpose and should only be used as a last resource and only for clients who do not need additional support for addiction problems and mental health issues. In addition, these should never be sited outside the borough unless there are safety issues involved.

• Any increased use of private sector landlords should go hand in hand with a licensing scheme to ensure that standards are met and to prevent abuses.

• The relationship with RBH should be strengthened to reduce homelessness taking place.

• The lack or failure of the tracking system should be addressed immediately.

• A directory of services should be drawn up as promised months ago and widely circulated together with clear pathways in the form of ‘flow-charts’ for those wishing to access services or refer clients.

• The telephone helpline number is still not widely known by agencies and those who come into contact with homeless people. This number should be widely circulated. A free telephone which is easily accessible should be available in each township. There should also be helpful and caring personnel available to help those who lack telephone skills

• More fiscal resources need to be allocated immediately to address some of these issues. Whilst we accept the need to operate within tight financial constraint, it is unrealistic to provide an effective level of service against a background of increasing service demand on the scale outlined in the IR. This is particularly vital prior to the changes to the welfare system which will make the situation even worse to an extent that cannot yet be accurately predicted.

• Still too much money is spent on non-essentials by RMBC such as the Feelgood Festival and ‘celebrity events’ with little or few financial returns. The council needs to see the homelessness issue as being an essential service and allocate funding accordingly. This would be real evidence of a caring culture.

• Re the “lack of confidence in the Council‘s commitment and ability to reasonably consider future impacts and carry out reasonable impact assessments.” This needs to be addressed immediately. The council exacerbated this situation and despite hard work done on the ground by Cllr’s Linden & Hornby, the council as a corporate body need to consider allocation of additional resources as a matter of urgency.

• The development of a short term, probable hostel-based emergency accommodation service should be a priority. Whilst we cannot reinvent Providence House, we must remember that it fulfilled an urgent and increasing need and that its closure has had a major, negative impact on the town and some of its most vulnerable citizens

• Many charities and voluntary organisations complain bitterly in private about the cuts in their funding and the perception that because they are heavily ‘subsidised’ by free, volunteer labour, it is expected that they can operate on minimal and zero funding. They also say that they cannot speak out ‘officially’ in case they put existing funding at risk. RMBC need to strengthen their relationships with these bodies and participate fully in the Homelessness Forum.

• All changes in service must be accompanied by a robust monitoring and tracking system in order to monitor effectiveness, identify problems at an early stage and add tweaks as and when they are needed.

Conclusion

Prevention is always far better than cure and although homelessness with never be eradicated completely, it would be useful to set targets on which success or failure of any strategies can be judged.

Still far too many people are being made homeless unnecessarily and anecdotal evidence from RBH tenants strongly indicates that early advice and assistance for those experiencing difficulties is either not happening or is happening far too late when the situation has passed ‘tipping-point’.

Many exciting and long-awaited improvements are planned for the borough over the next few years; Metrolink, Shopping Centre, river-reopening etc. It is difficult to see how these will fully benefit the wider community against the background of a failing economy with close to zero-growth and associated social deprivation of which homelessness is its sharpest and unacceptable edge.

We still feel that the cuts that led to this situation were ill-advised and were made with little or no consultation with service-users or supporting agencies whose knowledge, experience, skills and insight were effectively bypassed in the cause of expediency. It is essential that the council has access to this expertise and accesses them before making any future decision-making that will impact upon them.

It is a problem that we need to tackle head on.

Shirley Kennedy & Pete Hinchliffe

Co-organisers, ‘Chill-Out’ campaign

Rochdale Homeless: Common Sense Prevails

Town Hall Sleep-Out Event Postponed

Following high level talks with senior council officials, Chill-Out has called off the mass-sleep out at the Town Hall in protest at the cuts in the provision of emergency bed provision due to council cutbacks as they believe that significant progress has been made in order to address the homelessness crisis that has seen homelessness spiral by 200 percent within the past year.

After intense pressure from ‘Chill-Out’ over the past five weeks, the council has offered :-

• An immediate, high level review of the protocols involving emergency beds.
• An immediate high-level review of care management. (Both of these in the light not only of the evidence that we have produced based on actual cases but also on cases picked up by the council's own Team.)
• A Directory to be produced which will be distributed showing precisely what, where and how help is available.
• An early meeting to be set up with the Portfolio Holder to take this forward.
• Meetings between Chill-Out and senior council officers who will work with us on policy and to feed back to us on hostel provision and statistics.
• A pilot scheme based on Heywood involving volunteers and resources to provide supported tenancies.

This is NOT the end of 'Chill-Out'. Although the sleep-out is postponed, there is vital work for us to do in helping to draw up and monitor new policies that will provide an effective, caring and compassionate response to those in need that will put people rather than pounds, shillings and pence first.

We are doing a photo-call with Jimmy Cricket the renown Irish comedian this morning at 11.10 in the Memorial Gardens where we will announce the news.

There will be opportunities to photograph Jimmy wearing appropriate comedy night-attire doing a mock sleep-out on a park bench with the Town Hall providing a fitting back-drop.
Additional information

1. Chill-Out’ is an apolitical group and you can find out more about us by following our Blog at http://chilloutrmbc.blogspot.co.uk and also on Twitter @Chil1Out .
2. A homeless man died in Heywood, Rochdale just before Christmas when temperatures plummeted.

ENDIT

Response from Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP

Dear Hinchliffe and Kennedy,

Thank you for your email of 8 May to Rt Hon Grant Shapps regarding Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council on the number of emergency beds for the homeless, I have been asked to respond on his behalf. I apologise for the delayed reply.

This Government is committed in tackling and preventing homelessness as the Government has invested £400 million over the next four years to support to local authorities and the voluntary sector with their services to prevent homelessness and tackle rough sleeping. This includes £10m being made available between 2010/11 to 2012/13 to fund voluntary sector schemes to improve access to the private rented sector for single homeless people and, £42.5 million for the Homelessness Change Programme which will provide in excess of 1,500 new and improved bed spaces to improve hostels for rough sleepers and ensure that those coming off the streets get the support they need.

On top of that the Government announced an additional £70m investment this year:

• £20million - Homelessness Transition Fund to support the roll out of No Second Night Out and protect vital front line services

• £20million - Preventing Repossessions Fund to enable local authorities intervene earlier and help people stay in their homes.

• £20million - Single Homelessness Prevention Fund to help ensure single homeless people get access to good housing advice. This is on top of the existing £12.5m to help single people access private rented sector accommodation.

• £5million boost to the Homelessness Change Programme (bringing the total investment to £42.5m) to deliver improved hostel provision and provide over 1,500 new and improved bed spaces.

• £5million - Social Impact Bond – using a payment by results model to help persistent rough sleepers in London. This is the first Social Impact Bond set up to tackle homelessness in the world.

The Government has also invested £6.5 billion over the next four years for Supporting People which will protect the preventative services that help the most vulnerable live independently and retain their tenancies.

As you may be aware, this money goes to local authorities, and they have complete freedom to spend the money how they wish, based on local needs and priorities. For this reason, I am afraid that I am not able to comment or intervene on specific local decisions to change or end particular services.

Yours sincerely,

Natasha Nwoko

Jimmy Cricket & Chill-Out Media Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 10.00 May 23rd 2012

Jimmy Cricket: Publicity Event

In preparation for the sleep-out event at Rochdale Town Hall on May 29th to coincide with council cabinet meeting.

Jimmy Cricket (http://www.jimmycricket.co.uk/) the well known Irish comedian and Rochdale resident will be doing a photo-opportunity and interview in the Memorial Gardens opposite Rochdale Town Hall at 11.15 am on Friday 25th of May 2012.

There will be opportunities to photograph Jimmy wearing appropriate comedy night-attire doing a mock sleep-out on a park bench with the Town Hall providing a fitting back-drop.

This is in protest at Rochdale Council’s plans to cut emergency bed provision for Rochdale’s homeless. This has already seen the closure of the Salvation Army Hostel at Providence House.
.
All members of the media welcome to attend.
Additional information

1. Chill-Out’ is an apolitical group and you can find out more about us by following our Blog at http://chilloutrmbc.blogspot.co.uk and also on Twitter @Chil1Out .
2. A homeless man died in Heywood, Rochdale just before Christmas when temperatures plummeted.
3. In the recent local elections, Labour won 17 out of 20 contested seats massively increasing their control of Rochdale council.

ENDIT

MP Speaks Out

“Thirteen homeless groups have lost their contracts with Rochdale Council,” he said, “and while I understand that no area is immune from Government cuts this should not become a Cinderella service. Helping the homeless and making sure people are not forced to sleep rough should be a Council priority service." Simon Danczuk MP

Rochdale's MP, Simon Danczuk has today posted an article on his website in which he speaks out about the growing homelessness crisis in the town.

Quoting figures obtained from the House of Commons Library, the MP states that homelessness in the Borough has increased by over 200% during the last year, confirming exactly what Chill-Out supporters have been saying.

The figures show that 160 people presented themselves to RMBC as homeless in 2011 as opposed to 53 in 2010.

Mr Danczuk also criticised the recent RMBC policy of directing funding to national charities rather than local service providers. "“I think organisations like Petrus and the Sanctuary Trust hostel have the local knowledge and understanding of our town’s needs to deliver a better service,” he said. “Developing innovative local service models is the best way forward.”"

Chill-Out will be extending an invitation to Mr Danczuk to join us on 29th May.

‘Chill-Out’ talks with Council Leader and CEO ‘positive’ but no change as yet.

Today, ‘Chill-Out’ co-organisers Shirley Kennedy and Pete Hinchliffe together with Father Paul Daly met with Council Leader Colin Lambert and RMBC CEO Jim Taylor to lay out our main areas of concern in relation to the provision of and access to emergency homeless beds in the borough.

We gave several ‘case-study’ examples of individuals who had been failed by or who had encountered serious problems with the operation of the new system. We laid out our reservations about the ‘Dial-A-Bed’ service and also spoke of our dissatisfaction with some of the accommodation being offered which was, in our view, unsuitable and often situated far from the borough itself. An hotel in Manchester was cited as an example.

It was discussed as to whether or not some of the problems thus far experienced could be put down to ‘teething-troubles’ and whilst we agreed that some issues may be due to this, we reiterated the fact that many were due to more fundamental problems due to service cuts.

Jim Taylor promised to go away and provide some figures and also to look at the cases related to individuals that had been provided by ‘Chill-Out’.

The meeting was cordial and Cllr Lambert and Jim Taylor listened to us and did not merely sit there defending RMBC’s Policy. We acknowledged the difficulties posed by all councils due to severe cuts from central government but all agreed that despite this, the council had a statutory duty to fulfil.

It was agreed that a line of communication had been established between us and the council and that we will meet again soon to give Cllr Lambert and Jim Taylor time to study our concerns and get some facts and figures and explore possible remedies.

After the meeting, Shirley, Pete and Paul held a short feedback session and whilst we agreed that the meeting had been positive, it did not give us any mandate to recommend that the sleep-out at the Town Hall be abandoned at this time and that it should still go ahead as planned. We will report more fully to the wider group at our meeting next Tuesday when it is hoped that feedback from Council Officers will be available.

Open Letter to All RMBC Councillors

9 May 2012

Dear Councillor,


Re: Cuts to Emergency Beds for the Homeless

We are writing to you on behalf of ‘Rochdale Chill-Out’, an apolitical group of people who came together as a result of the decision by Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council to slash the number of emergency beds. We are informed that virtually all of the beds prior to the cuts were almost always in full occupancy.

We would specifically wish to know your views and intentions with regard to this issue? As you will be aware, these cuts have already resulted in the closure of Providence House, the hostel and support facility run by the Salvation Army.

‘Chill-Out’ feels that this places the most vulnerable and dispossessed of Rochdale, Heywood and Middleton’s citizens in a very precarious position that could result in very pronounced mental and physical health issues and in the worst cases, early mortality.

We really would like to ascertain your own views on this matter and would welcome the opportunity to discuss them further with you. We know that RMBC is under severe budgetary restraint but feel that this is a cut too far and leaves the most vulnerable people in society to bear the brunt.

We further believe that the ‘Dial-A-Bed’ facility will only meet the needs of a tiny proportion of this group.

We are asking you to examine this as a matter of urgency and use your influence or take any action possible in order to prevent more deaths on the streets.

We would be grateful for your early response and look forward to discussing this issue further with you at our ‘Chill-Out’ at the Town Hall on May 29th.

You can find out more about us by following our Blog at http://chilloutrmbc.blogspot.co.uk and @Chil1Out on Twitter.

Yours sincerely,

Pete Hinchliffe & Shirley Kennedy
Chill-Out Co-Organisers

Open Letter to Grant Shapps MP

Tuesday May 8th 2012

Grant Shapps MP
Minister of State for Housing & Local Government
House of Commons
Westminster
LONDON SW1A 0AA


Dear Mr Shapps,

We are writing to you on behalf of ‘Rochdale Chill-Out’, an apolitical group of people who came together as a result of the decision of Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council to cut the number of emergency beds for the homeless from 500 to under 200. We are informed that virtually all of the 500 beds were almost always in full occupancy.

These cuts have already resulted in the closure of Providence House, the hostel and support facility run by the Salvation Army.

We are particularly concerned that the council apparently thinks that it can somehow plug the gaps by setting up a ‘Dial-a-Bed’ service. Given the client group that this is aimed at and having daily contact with workers from homeless charities, we are deeply sceptical about the viability of this. Given the risks in terms of mental and physical health issues, we cannot endorse some sort of ‘suck it and see’ policy that could result in increased early mortality rates on our streets. Neither are we prepared to accept assurances that the matter will be kept under review.

Many homeless people have a variety of ongoing issues relating to health, dependency and social factors. It is not simply a matter of finding them a bed for the night but also putting in appropriate support measures to help them to deal with and manage their problems.

You can discover more about us by following our Blog:
http://chilloutrmbc.blogspot.co.uk and also on Twitter @Chil1Out.

As well as meeting with councillors, charity-workers and other interested parties, we plan to hold a mass sleep-out outside the Town Hall on May 29th to coincide with the cabinet meeting in order to draw attention to the plight of Rochdale’s homeless but more importantly, to try to persuade our councillors that this policy is wrong.

We are asking you to examine this as a matter of urgency and use your influence or take any action possible in order to prevent more deaths on the streets.

Yours sincerely,

Pete Hinchliffe & Shirley Kennedy
Chill-Out Co-Organisers

Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 08.30 May 7th 2012

Chill-Out Group plan mass ‘sleep-out’ at Rochdale Town Hall as protest at emergency bed cuts.

Protest set for May 29th to coincide with council cabinet meeting.

Rochdale, May 1st 2012: The Chill-Out Group held their first meeting tonight at which they vowed to oppose the cuts by the Labour-led council which will see emergency bed provision for the homeless cut from about 500 beds to about 160. The cuts will also see the introduction of a “Dial-a-Bed” policy for those seeking emergency accommodation.

• At the meeting, Co-Organiser Pete Hinchliffe, a Labour Party member for many years cut up his party card in protest and said, “Since these savage and cruel cuts, I can no longer carry this card with a clear conscience.”

• The council plan to replace the service with a helpline number and keep the situation ‘under review’ but Chill-Out believes that these measures are ineffectual. Pete went on to say, “Emergency beds are often accessed by people with mental issues and are destitute. A helpline will in no way meet their needs and many will find it impossible to access.. As for ‘keeping it under review’, this means nothing and is a slap in the face for those in the most dire need.”

• The Chill-Out Group is apolitical but has attracted support from politicians of all parties, including Labour plus others including clerics, workers with homeless charities, concerned members of the public and medical staff.

• Pete, a retired nurse and former trade union convenor in the NHS said, “This is a personal embarrassment to me as it was actually the Labour Group that drove through this heartless policy. They really are attacking our most needy and vulnerable citizens.”

• Chill-Out have also attracted wide interest through blog and twitter activity.
• The Twitter account can be found at @Chil1Out
• The Blog is at http://chilloutrmbc.blogspot.co.uk
• The Chill-Out Group is hoping to attract as much publicity as it can for the event.
• The Salvation Army Band has been asked to play suitable music to lull the protesters to sleep on May 29th and an operatic singer has agreed to perform suitable nocturnal pieces.
• The event is designed to be peaceful and good-humoured with the intention of getting sanity to prevail and the policy reversed.
• The group is also asking for an emergency meeting with the council’s new CEO to discuss the issue ‘as a matter of urgency’.

Additional information

1.     A homeless man died in Heywood, Rochdale just before Christmas when temperatures plummeted.

2.     In last week’s elections, Labour won 17 out of 20 contested seats massively increasing their control of the council.

3.     Jim Taylor started work as RMBC’s new CEO two weeks ago.

4.     He replaces Roger Ellis who retired early.

ENDIT

Email friendsofchillout at gmail dot com 
or tweet us for contact details and photographs.

THE CHILL-OUT IS ON!

What a fantastic meeting! So much passion, energy, knowledge and experience... anyway, less of me!

We had a real wealth of talent; politicians, candidates, experienced campaigners, homelessness workers, the press, people with communications experience... even a roving sky-pilot who people kept calling 'Father'!

We all just gelled. The great news is that CHILL-OUT IS ON!!!!

We are no longer just a disparate group of malcontents sending off messages into cyberspace but a tight, focussed group with a mission.

There will be loads of publicity and press releases over the coming weeks. We have another meeting to be held in Rochdale on Tuesday May 15th.

More importantly, the mass sleep-Out is going ahead outside the Town Hall on the night of the Cabinet Meeting  on Tuesday May 29th.

We need as many as possible to turn up with sleeping bags, mattresses etc. We hope to provide accredited security personel to protect those wishing to sleep out for the whole night.

There will also be music; hopefully provided by the Salvation Army Band and other events.  I will be playing 'Kumbaya' on my Patagonian nose-flute.

We want this to be a non-threatening, apolitical fun event aimed at reversing this policy that will see 500 emergency beds reduced to under 200.

Even if you cannot commit to sleeping out, we welcome supporters bearing gifts of fruitcake etc. We also hope to provide a steaming cauldron full of: Mrs Doyle's Super-Economy, Gourmet Recipe, RMBC-Approved, Meatless Dosser Broth (WARNING: May be served by Nuts!)

DATE NIGHT

Tuesday, 29 May, 2012 was unanimously agreed as the night on which the Rochdale Borough Chill-Out will take place.

A more detailed report of last night's meeting will follow later.

'Big Sleep' Plan in Protest at Cuts to Homeless Beds

Big Sleep to Protest at Bed Cuts for Homeless

CELEBRATING MAY DAY - A CHILL-OUT SUPPORTER SPEAKS OUT

Well, as a lifelong socialist I will be celebrating May Day by doing something different and more active.

I will be attending the:

Chill-Out Meeting to be held at 7.00pm, Tonight, May 1st at St Joseph's Presbytery, Mary Street Heywood, OL10 1EG

To me, May 1st is less about being a socialist and more about celebrating the lives of 'ordinary' people and their contribution to their communities.

For a variety of reasons, not everyone has a job or even a home. Once, many years ago I too found myself on my beam-ends and ended up kipping on friends sofas and even spent a couple of nights sleeping in a wooden hut in Broadfield Park!

RMBC thinks it can solve this issue by withdrawing funding for emergency beds and putting in a p*ss-poor 'Homeless Helpline'. It can't. This is a big problem that could rapidly become a crisis.

So, this May Day, let's put politics aside, pull together and show that this crazy and compassionless policy is several steps too far and is as paletable as a polystyrene cup of RMBC's Meatless Dosser Stew!

Not everyone can attend meetings or actively join a mass sleep-out but you can join our group @Chil1Out on Twitter or follow this blog.

Have a happy May Day y'all whichever party you support - or indeed, if you support none of them.

If you are a member of Rochdale Labour Group and are reading this, spend at least part of today examining your conscience and try to remember why it was you joined the Party in the first place.

Ask yourself one question:-

What is more important to you, toeing the party line or serving ALL the people in your community; including the less cuddly ones?

ROUGH SLEEPER

He was there
I didn't hear him enter
Life in a bag on his shoulder
Head lowered
Eyes watching the back of the room.

"Brew?"
He nodded, sat at a table
"Milk? Sugar?"
Another nod
"How many sugars?"
No answer, a nod wouldn't do
I placed the sugar
On the table.

He drank slowly
Warming bones takes time
Later he reached for clean clothes
Then returned from his shower.

"Dinner? Tata Hash?"
He nodded
I left the brown sauce with the plate
And refilled his cup
His face looked painful
The gash across his eyebrow deep
External wounds
They would heal.

He turned the pages of the paper
And didn't read a word
The rain beat the windows outside
The clock ticked
When it was time
He moved.

His life returned to his shoulder
I didn't watch him leave
I pray he returns.

M

Chill- Out Meeting

"Following discussions with the Town Hall, I am given to understand that there is no objection in principle to the proposed Chill-Out sleep-out at the Town Hall providing that we do not cause an obstruction. Discussions are ongoing."   - Blue Shed Blogger

A Chill-Out Meeting has now been organised:

7pm TUESDAY, MAY 1st  at
St JOSEPH'S PRESBYTRY, HEYWOOD, GTR MANCHESTER OL10 1EG

Please come along and join us.

Growing Numbers

"If the council refuse to budge, we plan to doss-out for a night in front of the Town Hall in order to draw attention to the situation which basically will make it damned-near impossible to access an emergency bed without going through a load of rigmarole via a telephone 'helpline'."

Blue Shed Blogger

Growing support for the Rochdale Chill-Out is continuing and Blue Shed Blogger has dedicated his latest post over at Blogs from the Blue Shed to air his views on the new RMBC policy and explain why he is supporting the Chill-Out. The full post can be read here.

On Twitter the Chill-Out tweets have gathered 42 followers in less than 48 hours with support coming from all sectors of the twitter community.

Meanwhile, the conversation continues on the Rochdale Online Forum.

Join us.

And We're Off!

Rochdale Online were the first to break the news and the proposed Chill Out has been gaining momentum ever since.

Your can read the full article on Rochdale Online and/or join us in the discussion taking place in the
 Rochdale Online Forum.

You can also comment below and follow us on twitter @Chil1Out


At the moment a date for the Chill-Out has not been set - we're still hoping that Rochdale Council will see sense and open dialogue with those who have serious concerns regarding the cuts and new homeless strategy.