At the end of March, we had the pleasure of hosting our fourth in-person Housing Partner Forum.  We welcomed our National Homelessness Property Fund 2 (NHPF2) housing partners and three external speakers to share their housing sector knowledge, insights and expertise. The forum provides the perfect opportunity for passionate people to come together to create meaningful connections and discuss innovative solutions to achieve the best outcomes and long-term results for people who have or are experiencing homelessness.

About The Forum

Our first Housing Partner Forum took place at the end of 2022. Since then, we have held an event six monthly, in locations across the UK. The Forum’s goal has always been to provide a shared learning opportunity and a collective experience to bring about meaningful change – not just for our Impact Property Funds and tenants, but also to exchange best practices and design interventions in the context of homelessness for the fund’s housing partners. 

While our forums have evolved, becoming increasingly interactive and innovative, it’s important that our core ambition remains: to find solutions to homelessness.

Our most recent Housing Partner Forum was facilitated by our Head of Homelessness Property Funds, Chris Cullen and Martin Lawson, Head of Strengthening Impact. 

Following fund updates, including housing partner strategy and the impact of increased Local Housing Allowance on tenants, Chris shared key statistics from a recent Alma Economics report, commissioned by Big Society Capital, the UK’s leading social impact investor. This independent report focuses on the work we’re achieving together through Resonance’s Homelessness Property Funds and shows the significant social value that can be created by impact investment.

Read the full Big Society Capital and Alma Economics report HERE.

Keynote Speakers

Rachael Walker, Policy and Research Director at Policy in Practice (PiP), is passionate about people accessing the benefits they are entitled to, and her energetic presentation reflected this. According to PiP, as of April 2023, an estimated £19bn of benefits went unclaimed, and six million households were missing out on at least one benefit. With the cost-of-living crisis continuing, these benefits could positively impact many families' housing, social care and overall wellbeing, helping to move them out of poverty.

Rachel shared PiP’s. ‘Better Off Calculator’ – a tool that helps people understand what benefits they are eligible for. This tool can be used by everyone working to support people facing housing and the cost of living crisis. 

Find out more about the ‘Better Off Calculator’ HERE

Amy Cripps, Head of Move On at St Mungo’s, shared challenges that the Benefits Cap was having on tenants. This led to a short workshop consisting of two groups focused on 1) how to help tenants manage their expenses when rent rises, and 2) what can housing partners do when benefits caps are affecting the work they’re doing?

We were delighted that Ruth Owen, Deputy Director of FEANTSA, was able to join the Forum (virtually from Brussels!), to give us insight into how homelessness is being tackled, through collaboration, across Europe, through various solutions, including Housing First.

Find out more about the work of FEANTSA, HERE

And finally, Jonathan Tan, CEO of Greater Change, explained how his charity is providing personalised grants and individual support to help people move out of homelessness for good. Greater Change works with charities who can refer people in financial crisis to them for one-off specific financial support. This could include support for rent arrears, mental and physical health treatment, vital equipment such as laptops and mobile phones and upskilling/training. So far, over 900 people have been supported by the charity.

Read about the work of Greater Change HERE

Martin Lawson, Resonance’s Head of Strengthening Impact, closed the afternoon with workshops exploring innovative solutions to homelessness. In two breakout groups, housing partners and keynote speakers discussed and presented various potential solutions, which were then discussed in a wider group debate. 

The Forum proved to be an  inspirational event and it was heartening to see individuals and different organisations across the UK discussing, homelessness and the desperate need to ensure people facing housing crisis are able to move out of temporary accommodation and into a safe and affordable home of their own.

National Homelessness Property Fund 2

NHPF2 purchases properties in the heart of local communities, chosen with the fund’s expert housing partners; so far it has partnered with ten across the UK. Properties are refurbished to a high standard including improving their energy efficiency.

Once refurbished, properties are handed over to the housing partner to manage tenancies and support tenants.

Stable homes allow tenants to transition from homelessness to becoming part of their community, gaining employment or training, saving for their future and giving them the ability to eventually move on into their own private accommodation.

The fund has ambition to raise £300m in order to buy 1,500 properties and to house 16,000 people across the UK, over its lifetime.