Rough Sleeper Move-on Accommodation & Support

Rough Sleeper Move-on Accommodation and Support Service Specification

Bath & North East Somerset Council is seeking a provider of housing management and support services to former rough sleepers, accommodated in properties owned by the Council.

The Rough Sleeper Move-on Project is made up of 20 self-contained flats situated at 23 Grosvenor Place, Bath.

The project will provide medium to long term supported accommodation for people currently in emergency or temporary accommodation with a history of rough sleeping or at risk of returning to rough sleeping in Bath & North East Somerset.

Rough sleeping is defined in this context as anyone sleeping in the open air, such as on streets, in tents, doorways, parks, or encampments, or any place not designed for habitation such as car parks, makeshift shelters, or in vehicles.

23 Grosvenor Place is funded by MHCLG’s (now DLUHC) Next Steps Accommodation Programme, which was established to generate move-on accommodation for former rough sleepers currently living in emergency ‘Everyone In’ accommodation set up in response to the Covid-19 pandemic to ensure that no one was sleeping rough during the national lockdown. 50 people who had been rough sleeping in B&NES were housed in emergency accommodation as part of the initial ‘Everyone In’ work in March, April and May 2020, and many are still sustaining their placements. The Dispersed Lettings response will be funded by the Council.

The Rough Sleeper Move-on Project adds significantly to the range and volume of specialist accommodation for former rough sleepers and those at risk of rough sleeping into the future, adding capacity to B&NES’s supported housing pathway, and meeting the needs of those who rough sleep in B&NES. 23 Grosvenor Place has recently been fully-refurbished to a high standard to ensure a good environment for improving outcomes for former rough sleepers.

Discussions with MHCLG on security of tenure at 23 Grosvenor Place resulted in an agreement that excluded licenses are being used at 23 Grosvenor Place. Two flats on the ground floor have been refurbished to a fully-accessible standard and, to ensure any former rough sleeper with mobility issues can be accommodated, these will permanently be let under Excluded License.

The building includes an office and counselling rooms. The office accommodates 4 members of staff and a remote video doorbell enables control of the front door during the day. Residents only have keys to their own flat/studio. Overnight concierge staff are sited on the ground floor near the front door. Visitors and guests are not allowed. CCTV covers the front of the building and, combined with regular patrols along Grosvenor Place, enables staff to pick up on any anti-social behaviour that might impact on nearby residents.