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Make it "No
2nd Night Out" on the Streets
LIVERPOOL people are being
asked to use a helpline which will see those sleeping on the street receive
help. The 'No 2nd Night Out' initiative says that while there may be many
reasons why somebody sleeps rough for one night there is no reason why they need
to spend a second night on the streets. By ringing:- 0300 123 2041 or via
sending an email
to the outreach
workers from the Whitechapel Centre will provide a rapid response to try and
ensure no new rough sleeper spends more than a single night, on the streets.
Since 'No 2nd Night Out' started in 2012, hundreds of people have been helped
after people contacted the service, in the first 6 months of this year 160 calls
were made to it.
Councillor Frank Hont, cabinet member for housing said:- "We know there is
a lot of concern about homelessness especially about rough sleeping as winter
approaches and people are keen to help. 1 of the best ways they can do so is by phoning:-
'No 2nd Night Out' when they
see someone sleeping rough and every effort will be made to support people to
come off the streets.
We want to prevent the situation where rough sleeping becomes an entrenched way
of life and the sooner people can be encouraged to come off the streets the
better it is for them.
There is a misconception among some people that those who are sleeping rough are
doing so because there is nowhere for them to go. In fact we fund 750 temporary
accommodation places and the outreach workers have been successful in persuading
many to come off the streets up to 27 in 1 calendar month, in 2016.
Not everybody will accept the offer of help and support, but we are doing our
best to try and see no one ever needs to sleep for a second night on the streets
and we are asking the public to play their part by contacting 'No 2nd Night
Out' when they see somebody sleeping rough."
David Carter, Chief Executive of the Whitechapel Centre, said:- ?Sleeping
on the streets is dangerous and can be life threatening, particularly as the
winter approaches and the weather turns colder.
We would encourage people to save the number into their phone and give us a
call, anytime, when they see someone sleeping rough in Liverpool.
Everyone's situation is different and we work with each person to offer the best
support and appropriate accommodation available to them. For most people coming
indoors into accommodation happens on the day they become homeless, but for some
people it can take time, to find the right solution that the person feels
able to accept.
We don't give up on people until we have helped someone come indoors. Our
outreach team is out every day and calls to 'No 2nd Night Out' helps us find
people quickly, before they become entrenched on the streets. We can only do
this with the help of the public and we really appreciate their calls." |
