· Update from Joint Housing Protocol Review – Roxanne McAllister, Looked After Children and Care Leavers Service, Lancashire County Council (20 mins)
Minutes:
Roxanne McAllister, Leaving Care Service, Lancashire County Council provided the Board with an update on Lasting Homes.
The Board noted the following key points around what the data is showing and what is being done to support young people into their homes:
· 91% of young people live in 'suitable accommodation'.
· 20% of young people have lived in 3+ addresses since leaving care.
· 48% of young people have lived in their home for more than 12 months.
· Lancashire County Council commission 374 homes across the county for young people aged 16-25. This is part of a block contract that allows young people to self-fund these homes once they turn 18 years of age.
· There is a Lancashire Care Leavers' Joint Housing Protocol and a Leaving Care Lasting Homes Panel.
· There is a Lancashire House Project.
· There is a Housing Reference Group.
· Work with housing providers and districts to develop new housing projects.
· Personal Advisors build relationships with their young people and work jointly to support them into suitable and stable homes.
The Board were informed of various challenges which were as follows:
· There is limited one bedroom housing stock in Lancashire, particularly for under 25s.
· There are no active plans of any property of this kind being developed, despite 75% of housing applications in some districts being submitted for one-bedroom properties.
· Young people's move on from transitional homes is delayed due to lack of options which is delaying their progress and resulting in lack of availability in this provision.
· In many districts in Lancashire young people do not automatically receive priority banding for social housing.
· Accessing emergency accommodation for those who need it is challenging.
The Board were asked to discuss in groups, one of the following priorities which have been raised after discussions with young people accessing housing provisions. Young people were asked what their priorities were, which do correlate with discussions with Personal Advisors. Young people's priorities were as follows:
· Accessing work or an apprenticeship while in supported accommodation.
· Accessing social housing.
· Emotional preparedness for living alone.
· Practicalities of living in supported accommodation.
· The private housing market and lack of guarantor.
Following the presentation, the following issues/comments were raised:
· As a Board, further research needs to be done with regards to Guarantors and investigate further what other Councils are doing regarding this and then discuss again at a future Board meeting.
· Possible access to two-bedroom properties if one-bedroom homes are not available and discuss this with social housing to include young people with a protected characteristic which would then provide an opportunity to have the same allocation policy of choice-based lettings.
· The Board noted that a motion was taken to Full Council on 23 February 2023 where it was highlighted that there is a campaign to make 'care experienced' a protected characteristic and that several councils across the UK had already supported this campaign and requested that Lancashire County Council support the campaign also.
· Look at having "dummy-run" stays in accommodation in preparedness for living independently.
· Emotional support for young people who are living independently, who they can contact out of hours as well as during the day, having a peer support group or WhatsApp group, possibly older care experienced young people to mentor them.
· To revisit the Staying Put Policy as a Board.
Resolved: That the Corporate Parenting Board:
i) Requested that further research into Guarantors be carried out by the Permanence Service, Lancashire County Council.
ii) Would revisit the Staying Put Policy at a future meeting of the Board.