14/04/2023 - Permalink

Views sought from residents who access ‘floating housing support’ to help shape future service

Related topics: Adult social care / Housing / Partner organisations

Shropshire Council are asking residents who have access to floating housing support to take part in a survey, to help shape the service in the future.

Floating housing support is short to medium term housing-related support to help vulnerable people develop the skills and experience to be able to maintain their own accommodation and live independently in the community.

Shropshire Council proposes to change the way that potential service users are referred to floating support, and how floating support is allocated.

From October 2023 it’s proposed that referrals are dealt with by the council’s housing team, which will do an initial assessment of need and pass the referral on to the provider best placed to help. Allocation of support will be based on those people with the highest housing-related support needs, whilst also aiming to provide support to those with lower-level needs through access to ‘drop-ins’, advice and other resources as appropriate.

2 people at a desk looking at a computer

Floating housing support

Residents in Shropshire who either access floating housing support, or have done so in the past, are being asked:-

  • how they receive support
  • the sorts of issues that the support is helping them with
  • what works best about the support and what could be improved
  • what people think about the proposed change to how people are referred to the services.

The feedback from the survey will form part of the review of the service currently provided by Sustain consortium, who comprise of a number of support providers. The council are reviewing these contracts, and will be putting new contracts in place from October 2023.

Dean Carroll, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for growth, regeneration and housing, said:-

“It’s really important to the council that we hear from service users to help set out requirements for floating support from October.

“Floating support can be delivered in a number of ways (face to face, by telephone, by attending ‘drop-ins’) and to people with high-level support needs and low-level support needs. This means that Sustain providers are able to be flexible and to support as many people as possible, with a focus on those most in need.

“We’d like to continue this flexibility, whilst at the same time ensuring that floating support is prioritised for those people whose housing situation is most at risk of failing, and therefore puts them at risk of homelessness. This is why we are proposing that initial referrals are dealt with by our housing team, so they can appropriately assess the individual needs and refer them to the most appropriate provider.

“I would encourage anyone who is accessing, or has accessed, floating housing support to take part in the survey; your feedback will be taken into consideration when reviewing the service.”

To find out more and take part in the survey visit: Housing floating support (Sustain) – proposed changes | Shropshire Council