Agenda item

The report sought approval from the Cabinet Member for Housing Services, Private Renters and Planning for the receipt of grant funding of £847,281 from the GLA Single Homeless Accommodation Programme (SHAP).

Additionally, an award of a grant-funded contract to the Provider in accordance with the Council’s successful funding bid.

The Cabinet Member RESOLVED

1. That the Cabinet Member for Housing Services, Private Renters and Planning approve the receipt of grant funding from the GLA Single Homeless Accommodation Programme, in the sum of £847,281 over 3 years as permitted under Contract Standing Order (CSO)s 16.02 and 17.1.

2. Pursuant to CSO 9.07.1 d) the Cabinet Member for Housing Services, Private Renters and Planning approves the award of a grant funded contract to De Paul UK for a period of 3 years from 18th March 2024 to 18 March 2027 date as set out in the bid and the outlined in the table below, based on the financial year.

Reasons for decision

The Council’s Housing Related Support service had been working closely with De Paul UK on the planning for this bid, after having identified them as the Council’s preferred partner due to the excellent level of service delivery they had demonstrated since taking over another contract in the borough in 2022. This collaboration had led to the service specification for a complex needs’ adults service, combining both the Council’s and DePaul's expertise and values.

Partner agency De Paul UK was an integral part of designing the bid, which focused on the strength of the organisation, its proven track record of working in partnership to reduce rough sleeping in the borough and the ability to mobilise initiatives at pace.

The successful bid and award of funding from the GLA is ringfenced for the purpose of reducing and ending rough sleeping, as set out in the bidding process and was awarded on the basis of a specific initiative and delivery partner.

The new funding would enable the Council to increase provision in the homelessness Pathway for adults aged 24 and above with a history of repeated homelessness and rough sleeping who have complex support needs, a group identified through a strategic gap analysis as being underserved. The Council would define this as two or more of any of the following: substance and/or alcohol misuse, mental health, physical health, learning difficulties, chaotic lifestyles, experience of imprisonment and/or involvement in criminal justice system, victims and survivors of VAWG, affected by or at risk of sex working.

Alternative options considered

The Council could decide not to accept the grant. However, the Council’s successful bid was based on strong evidence of continued demand for services to tackle rough sleeping in the London Borough of Haringey, for which there was no other identified funding stream. Therefore, it was in the Council’s interest to accept the grant in order to deliver against the commitments set out in the Corporate Delivery Plan (2023-2024).

A tender process was not considered as it would not have been possible to award the grant monies to an alternative provider as the award was predicated on the delivery of this specific programme with the delivery partner who helped formulate the bid and outlined the delivery process.