Vulnerable supported through ‘Changing Futures’ programme

Housing and Rough Sleeping Minister Eddie Hughes has announced that vulnerable people in communities across England will be given extra support through the Changing Futures programme.

A joint initiative with The National Lottery Community Fund, the programme will provide almost £55 million to 15 local areas across England over the next three years, part of a wider £64 million programme.

The Programme will help some of the most vulnerable in society get the support they need, by funding local partnerships to better co-ordinate public and voluntary services and provide joined up support. Examples of the work Changing Futures will fund include: helping get rough sleepers registered with a GP to ensure they can access healthcare; outreach teams to help sex workers build a new life; skills and training to help disadvantaged adults gain employment; and new support pathways to help people with learning difficulties access local services.

Local areas will take a ‘person-centred’ and ‘trauma-informed’ approach to tailor support to individuals and their needs. Changing Futures will transform how services operate by linking up support across areas such as health, employment, and drug misuse.

The 15 areas across England that will receive funding under the programme are: Essex, Westminster, Sussex, Surrey, Bristol, Plymouth, Nottingham, Stoke-on-Trent, Hull, Sheffield, Leicester, Northumbria (Northumberland, Newcastle, Gateshead, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, and Sunderland), South Tees (Middlesbrough, and Redcar and Cleveland), Lancashire (Blackpool, Lancashire, and Blackburn with Darwen) and Greater Manchester.

Hughes said: “Our ground-breaking programme with the National Lottery Community Fund will help the most vulnerable in our society, giving them the tools they need to turn their lives around. By providing specialist, joined up support we can create long-lasting change, helping these people reach their full potential and build a brighter future.”