MP visits Sleaford HRS to see the impact of supported housing

A Conservative MP has visited one of our supported housing schemes.
Dr Caroline Johnson MP, who represents Sleaford and North Hykeham, visited Sleaford HRS, which supports people aged 18 and over who are homeless, vulnerably housed or at risk of losing their accommodation.

There are 21 rooms for single people and 15 single-person floating support rooms. The service delivers housing-related support in both short-stay accommodation and through floating support to people with a diverse range of needs.

On the visit, Phil Hardy, Chief Operations Officer and Scheme Manager Anna Cave gave Caroline a tour of the scheme and introduced her to some of the residents and colleagues.

Dr Caroline Johnson MP said: “I had a great afternoon learning a lot about the services for homeless people and people who are vulnerably housed across North Kesteven, and it’s been really interesting.

“I’ve been privileged to meet some of the service users as well and hear about how they’ve been able to use this service to piece their lives together after very difficult times for them.

“The staff are clearly really dedicated to the people they’re looking after, and they’re really working very hard.

“I was very impressed to see the enthusiasm and the vocational nature of the way that they work. They’re clearly really passionate about the work they do, seeing the huge value in what they’re achieving for and with the clients they’re working with, and I’m really impressed with all of them.”

Phil added: “Supported housing is about that broader ecosystem of housing.

“We talk about housing as if it’s a binary thing and it’s a permanent home that people live in but actually, to get to that permanent home, people come through a really different journey and have multiple complex needs.

“Having MPs see this stuff first-hand is really important to us for a couple of reasons.

“It keeps them connected to their constituency, but what it also enables them to do is connect to the policy debate, so when they’re back in parliament and they’re having debates, they can feel the reality of the decisions they make through policy.”