All too often, people fall into homelessness simply because they are unable to afford a month’s rent or the cost of a deposit. Homeless prevention grants play a crucial role by providing short-term, emergency funding which helps people secure or keep a safe place to live.
In the longer term, homeless prevention funds aim to tackle homelessness by supporting frontline organisations that provide specialist care to those at risk of or currently experiencing homelessness. This article explores how these grants and funds are key to transforming lives across the UK.
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Our homeless prevention grant stories
Today, people in the UK have to contend with several societal issues. High rental cost rises, insufficient council housing provision and the steep cost of living make it increasingly difficult for tenants to keep a roof over their heads.
In many cases, being able to pay off a small debt or make a rental deposit can be the difference between someone securing a home. We believe that being unable to afford a relatively small amount of money should never result in someone having to live on the streets, sofa surf, or take refuge in abandoned, dilapidated buildings.
That’s why we provide homelessness prevention grants through our Vicar’s Relief Fund (VRF). We work closely with support workers to provide an emergency grant of £350 for those facing eviction, and up to £500 for people accessing emergency accommodation. In the first quarter of 2024 alone, we awarded 1,103 grants, accumulating to a total of £450,329.
Most people wouldn’t consider a few hundred pounds to be a life-changing amount. However, for those at risk of homelessness, it provides the breathing room to seek support, access healthcare, and ultimately work towards a more secure future.
As well as giving people a financial boost, the VRF gives vulnerable people the opportunity, motivation and inspiration to create a better life for themselves. Maintaining this going forward is entirely down to their own hard work and determination.
In addition to one-off grants, the St Martin-in-the-Fields Charity also provides funding for a variety of projects and charities up and down the country offering specialist support for people at risk of or currently experiencing homelessness. Funding these essential organisations relies fully upon your incredible donations.
Read on to find out how your generosity has helped people experiencing homelessness, playing a crucial role in changing their lives for the better.
Support St Martin-in-the-Fields and help transform lives.
Gail
Gail had been living in sheltered housing enduring constant abuse and violent threats from her husband. This caused her to self-harm and become isolated from her family, resulting in her being referred to West Mercia Women’s Aid when she was in her late 60s.
To make matters worse, Gail had several severe health conditions, including chronic respiratory disease, diabetes, and arthritis, and was recovering from breast cancer.
While West Mercia Women’s Aid were able to find Gail safe, independent accommodation, she was unable to afford the initial cost required to move in. This is a common occurrence within women’s homelessness, often forcing women to stay with their abusers.
At this point, St Martin’s Charity provided a homeless prevention grant. This allowed Gail to pay one month’s rent in advance, take up her tenancy and she has remained in her new home ever since. Her strength and bravery to leave her abuser allowed her to make a positive change, improving both her health and her lifestyle.
Domestic abuse is one of the most common challenges experienced by women in particular. Refuge, a domestic violence charity for women and children, states that one in four women will experience domestic abuse at some point in their lifetime. Additionally, it takes a woman an average of seven attempts to flee their abuser for good, highlighting how people are often coerced and manipulated into staying when they know they shouldn’t.
Helen
Parenthood is also a factor often involved in women’s homelessness. Taking care of a child adds a whole new financial responsibility and may also make it difficult to find accommodation which is suitable for both parents and child.
When we were introduced to Helen, she had left the care system and was expecting a baby so decided to move into her partner’s flat. This, however, was short-lived. The conditions in the apartment were unsuitable, with a dangerous black mould spreading throughout the baby’s room. Understandably, Helen felt unsafe and concerned for her baby so required alternative accommodation.
This essentially left Helen living as a single parent with a new child, needing to finance a suitable home entirely independently. Many women face the risk of homelessness by finding themselves in this position. In fact, a report by the Guardian states that, as of December 2021, one in three lone mothers are in a constant struggle to keep their home.
Instead of granting a month’s rent in advance as the VRF did for Gail, Helen received a one-off homeless prevention grant to help her clear a small debt which was preventing her from moving somewhere more suitable. Thanks to your support and Helen’s determination, she and her child have since been thriving in a home which meets their needs.
Umar
In many cases, people flee war or danger in their own country and travel to the UK in search of a better life. However, accessing basic support and necessities isn’t always straightforward once they get here.
Discrimination and faults with the system are both contributing to higher rates of asylum seeker and refugee homelessness in the UK. Someone being granted asylum seeker or refugee status should give them a sense of security, knowing their application has been accepted. While having their status confirmed is generally positive, it doesn’t put an end to the adversity they face.
When an asylum seeker first arrives in the UK, they can be housed in dedicated Home Office accommodation. Once their status is granted and they’re formally recognised as a refugee, they’re given the right to work and claim benefits. However, they’re no longer entitled to their temporary accommodation and are asked to vacate the property, often at very short notice. If they’re then unable to secure an alternative property themselves, local councils are responsible for finding them a home, which is often difficult or takes a long time due to the lack of suitable council homes, potentially leaving refugees with nowhere to stay.
A report from the BBC highlights how more than 5,000 refugee households were classed as homeless between October and December 2023 in England, four times more than the same period in 2022. This rise stemmed from people in these households gaining asylum, no longer entitling them to Home Office accommodation.
This is something Umar is all too familiar with. He was forced out of his temporary accommodation and slept on his friends’ floors after being granted refugee status. Students and Refugees Together (START), an organisation supporting homeless refugees in Plymouth, helped Umar secure a job, but he was prevented from starting due to his lack of a stable address.
START continued to support Umar, finding him a room and applying for a homeless prevention grant via the VRF to help secure it. Umar was granted a payment which meant he could afford the deposit and move in. From here, becoming independent and securing a stable income was all down to Umar’s hard work. He now enjoys the responsibility of earning a living and being able to pay his rent himself.
How to apply for our homelessness prevention grant
We understand people in challenging situations don’t always have the confidence or means to reach out for support from a homelessness prevention grant themselves. That’s why we encourage others to do it on their behalf.
Our VRF portal explains exactly who’s eligible and how to apply for a homelessness prevention grant. Completing an application is the first step to receiving essential funding for permanent accommodation, and gaining specialist support for their specific needs.
We provide emergency financial support so that people in vulnerable situations can find – and keep – a safe place to live.
How we’re tackling homelessness with our homeless prevention fund
Charlie
Much like homelessness amongst refugees, LGBTQ+ homelessness is also becoming a growing concern. Half of LGBTQ+ people have experienced depression, as reported by the Mental Health Foundation, often as a result of abuse they’ve faced from family members and other people around them.
Charlie, who grew up in care from the age of nine, came out as trans first when he was 11 and again at 17. He suffered constant, threatening abuse from his neighbours because of his gender identity, forcing him to stay out late, sofa surf, and sleep on buses just to avoid being at home.
That’s when he found out about akt, a specialist LGBTQ+ homelessness charity supported by St Martin-in-the-Fields Charity’s homeless prevention fund. Charlie was supported by akt’s Trans Pathway project, a service dedicated to trans people who have experienced housing issues in Manchester. The team at akt worked with Charlie’s support worker to make his accommodation safer and identify somewhere more suitable for the long term.
In addition to the abuse from his neighbours, Charlie was also being disregarded by a gender referral clinic. The support he received from the Trans Pathway helped him move GPs and receive more specialist support from healthcare workers who better understood his circumstances.
Charlie’s efforts and unwavering determination both before and after he was referred to the Trans Pathway has seen his life transform for the better. He’s moved into a new flat away from his abusers and looks forward to what life has in store for him going forward.
Tash
Just like Charlie, Tash also received specialist LGBTQ+ homelessness support after being placed on akt’s Trans Pathway, financed by our homeless prevention fund. She was suffering domestic abuse linked to her gender identity so was first supported by akt to secure housing in a designated refuge. She was then able to move into the safety of her own flat just one year later.
akt’s support didn’t end there, however. Tash also received financial support to help her furnish her flat, as well as being helped to change her name and access gender-affirming care via a supportive GP. Additional funding was also provided through akt’s Independent Living Fund to help her purchase the equipment she needed to start college.
Not only did the Trans Pathway provide her with financial support, but it also gave her the confidence to stand up for herself and prioritise her own needs. Her efforts have seen her grow as a person, enabling her to enjoy life and make friends with others who have shared similar experiences.
