Homelessness prevention activities enable a household to remain in their current home, where appropriate, or provide options to enable a planned and timely move and help to sustain independent living.
Prevention information
We can intervene in three stages to prevent homelessness:
Early intervention
To identify those at risk and to provide services which support the person and their environment before early problems or disputes escalate beyond repair.
Pre-crisis intervention
These include advice services, mediation services, negotiation with landlords to avoid imminent loss of a home and targeted services at known risk points such as those leaving local authority care, prison or armed forces.
Preventing recurring homelessness
Our floating support service can help to prevent recurring homelessness where there are problems that cannot be resolved by rehousing alone.
We offer assistance for people with all aspects of housing. These include:
- Assistance with landlord disputes and rent problems
- Help to find a privately rented property
- Referrals to supported accommodation
- Applying to the West Lindsey Housing Register
- Assistance with mortgage problems
- Support with domestic abuse
- Support to keep your tenancy
Floating support service
Our service is focused on helping people who are at risk of homelessness, whether they are single people, couples, or families to achieve independence. Floating Support may also be able to help people who are due to be released from prison, or discharged from hospital. This is a free service for people in all types of tenancies or homeowners in need of additional housing related support.
Referrals will be prioritised on the basis that that the intervention will address, relieve or prevent homelessness. Where other issues are identified (for example - mental health, substance use), the service will signpost to the most appropriate support agencies to best meet the applicant’s needs, to allow joint working or alternative support.
Working with a designated support worker, together with other relevant support agencies, each person supported by the scheme has an individual support plan, helping them to achieve their goals and live independently.
Areas of support which can be offered through the floating support service include:
- finding accommodation and establishing tenancies
- setting up utility bills and payment mechanisms
- housing and welfare benefit claims
- establishing rent payment mechanisms
- advocacy
- signposting to support agencies
- rent arrears and evictions
- early intervention for failing tenancies
- obtaining furniture, accessing funding
- registering with GP/dentist
- opening bank accounts
- registering with housing providers
- viewing properties
- staying safe at home
- neighbour issues
- understanding tenancy agreements
- meaningful daytime activity
All cases will be dealt with in the strictest confidence
FAQ’s
How long will support last?
Our support is to help people who need short and longer term assistance. This may be from a matter of weeks, up to a maximum of two years. The aim is to help service users become independent so that support is no longer needed.
After three months, support plans will be reviewed with the input of all the agencies involved. At this point, plans can be extended and changed to add extra goals and areas of support.
There will usually be a period of less intensive support before the support is withdrawn. In this time, service users may be referred to different organisations which can help. As a service user, you will have a say in when and how this happens - it is your support plan and the ending of support should always be agreed.
Who can make a referral?
A referral can be done by any support agency, statutory agency, or by means of self referral. You can download a copy of the referral support form here.
Floating support referral form
Floating Support leaflet
