Rough Sleeper / Homelessness Provision and Wider Services for People with Complex Lives

Torbay Council is currently engaged in an alliance contract with Shekinah and Westward Housing for a project to reduce rough sleeping and homelessness. Shekinah are also the support provider for the Torbay Council's Engagement and Resettlement Service. They have been working in partnership with the Torbay Council to develop a new model of delivery for homelessness services and Shekinah secured the funding for the feasibility study into Housing First in Torbay undertaken by Crisis in early 2018. This has resulted in Torbay Council making a decision to move to a Housing First and Rapid Re Housing model and initial funding of £500k has been made available to commence this work. Due to their current work within Torbay and strategic involvement in the development of Housing First to date Shekinah are integral to ensuring the initial phase of work, in relation to restructuring of homelessness/rough sleeper services, can commence. The Council is therefore intending to form an alliance partnership with Shekinah to enable them to deliver the restructuring phase of the project.

Whilst the initial spend is below the current EU threshold for services under the light touch regime, this notice is being published because it is likely that Shekinah will access further funding as the project develops. Any further funding will be allocated through a wider alliance partnership and Torbay Council will tender for additional partners once the scope of the requirements have been developed and further funding secured.