AGM 25 January 2010

 Chair’s Report

The purpose of the Chair’s Report is to summarise the activity and achievements of the Preston Homeless Network over the past year.

 This is an impossible job as the activities of the Network are like an iceberg! We only see the tip of that iceberg when we get together. Nearly all the work of the network takes place away from these forums, through your individual efforts and through the way you work together in partnership. This is massive. The level of inter-agency interaction in Preston is impressive.

 That being said: the following are some of the milestones or significant achievements recorded in Forum minutes in the past twelve months:

·        The establishment of a homeless strategy and a rough sleeper strategy

·        A successful (whatever that is) rough sleeper count!

·        The opening of Recycling Lives and progress towards the opening of Emmaus.

·        The bedding-in (if that is not too much of a pun) of the new Fox Street and the development of a sense of move through and on in that establishment.

·        Dare I say it, progress with the idea of a Joint Protocol between Housing and Children’s Services when dealing with homeless 16 and 17 year olds.

·        Winter Watch

·        Co-ordinated Christmas provision and publicity distributed to some 40 agencies around Preston

·        Training for volunteers in the How Christians can help the homeless

·        The number of Community Cafes rising to four per week

·        The potential for a supported lodgings scheme for older homeless people

·        Stronger links with DISC

·        More resources for intensive work with more complex Probation and YOT cases.

The Forums continue to enjoy an attendance of about 25 people and in the past twelve months, 24 agencies have been represented here. Thank you for your attendance and hard work. Thanks to the Management Committee and to Fiona for writing and circulating the minutes.

 All this activity adds up to a sense of progress.The Forum and the Network are what you make them. Let’s keep on keeping on.

 

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