Derek Crossfield House is a supported housing scheme for young people aged 16-25 (single people and couples) who either have care of a baby or are expecting a child. There are 8 self-contained flats plus communal facilities on site including a garden, playroom, kitchen and laundry. All the flats are supplied with a cooker, fridge freezer and carpets
The Council has been providing funding for Derek Crossfield House since 2017. Prior to this, the support elements of the scheme were funded via Essex County Council as part of a wider contract for supported housing services for young persons. However, when this contract was retendered on a reduced scale in 2017, this scheme was no longer able to be supported and the Council has agreed funding on a yearly basis since this date.
Given the type of service offered and the level of ongoing demand, it is the view of officers that funding should be provided for a further year using a proportion of the Homelessness Prevention Grant.
It is likely that the Council would have a statutory duty to provide temporary accommodation for the current and future users of this scheme and that the cost of providing this accommodation would exceed the cost of supporting this facility,

To fund the scheme for a further period of twelve months using funds from the Homelessness Prevention Grant allocation for 2024/25.

Option 1 - Not to continue funding this scheme. However, the scheme is unique in the type of service that it provides to young parents who might otherwise be unable to sustain a tenancy putting them at risk of homelessness. This would then place a pressure on the Housing Solutions team and other and other public sector services.