Housing Justice UNLEASH email bulletin March 2007

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

Welcome to the March edition of the Housing Justice UNLEASH news and info bulletin. As always if you have comments or feedback on any item please let me know. Thanks

About this bulletin + subscribe/unsubscribe info
This bulletin is sent out about once a month offering what I hope is a useful 5 minute read, with links to further info and resources for people concerned about housing and homelessness in London. It is prepared with churches, other faith groups, individuals working in housing or homelessness, and smaller projects providing help to homeless people in mind. If you have an item of news, a need or an event you’d like to advertise please contact me.

Feel free to forward to colleagues or friends who may be interested. If you receive a copy in this way and you would like your own each month let me know. Also if you want to unsubscribe anytime.
email me a.murray@housingjustice.org.uk
NB I will respect your privacy and never share your email or personal details with other people or organisations without your express permission, and this email is always sent blind copy to prevent spam and viruses.

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Rough Sleepers: Volunteers needed for street counts + recent statistics
Launch of 10 Feet Away International new website and 2007 festival
Soup Runs count up and contact week
Winter Shelter & Soup Run Forum dates
Homeless Link one-day conference Move on: unlocking solutions
Westminster Churches Together Linking up on Homelessness event
SHELTER New Directions Seminar
The Good Book?...How the Bible can be used creatively in urban mission
Downing St petition against the destitution of Asylum Seekers
Join Housing Justice UNLEASH

Rough Sleepers: Volunteers needed for street counts
Communities and Local Government (formerly DCLG, before that the ODPM..) have asked Homeless Link to compile a register of volunteers who would be willing to act as independent verifiers. Volunteers would only have to undertake a couple of counts each and the CLG would cover expenses. If you are interested, please complete the attached form and return it to Luna Dizon at Homeless Link as soon as possible email luna.dizon@homelesslink.org.uk
Rough Sleepers: recent statistics
Also on the subject of rough sleepers, Broadway produces the quarterly Street to Home and Rough Sleeper Bulletins. The most recent bulletin from Oct-Dec 2006 can be found here - http://www.broadwaylondon.org/broadwayvoice/policy/Oct-Dec06_bulletin.pdf
Previous bulletins are also available via the Broadway website - http://www.broadwaylondon.org/broadwayvoice/policy_detail.asp?id=45

Launch of 10 Feet Away International new website and 2007 festival
10 Feet Away International Homeless Arts festival are holding a launch party for their new arts blog website on Thursday 8th March at St Johns Waterloo 7.00-10.00pm.
For more details, including plans and events happening this summer see http://tenfeetaway.wordpress.com/news/

Soup Runs count up and contact week
This week I am coordinating a count up and contact of all the soup runs in Central London in the evening. The purpose is to encourage everyone to join the soup run forum, and also to get an up to date, accurate figure of how many groups there are.
If you can spare an evening between now and this Sunday 4th March please call me on 020 7723 7273 x 242 or email a.murray@housingjustice.org.uk

Winter Shelter Forum
The next meeting of the Winter Shelters Forum will be a round table on Monday the 12th March at 6pm
Kings Cross Methodist Church
6 Crestfield St
London WC1H 8BW

If you would like to attend please RSVP to me a.murray@housingjustice.org.uk

Soup Run Forum
The next meeting of the Soup Run Forum is on Wednesday 28th March at 6.00pm
with invited guest, Westminster Labour Councillor Guthrie McKie
St Vincent's Centre Carlisle Place
London SW1P 1NL
If you would like to attend again please RSVP to me a.murray@housingjustice.org.uk

The new Online Soup Run Forum is now (finally…) up and running. Not a great deal to see on there yet, but it's there if you would like to get involved, or get a discussion thread going.
Please see Online Soup Run Forum

Homeless Link one-day conference Move on: unlocking solutions
Thursday 15th March 2007 London
Moving homeless households out of temporary accommodation and into settled homes has been a priority for over two years. Yet thousands of homeless people remain stuck in hostels and other forms of temporary supported accommodation, often outside the 'statutory homelessness' framework.
This national conference will share, for the first time, findings from Homeless Link's Move On Plans Protocol (MOPP) pilot. Supported by Communities and Local Government, the pilot tested how a new partnership approach between local authorities and providers could identify and overcome barriers, and significantly increase rates of move on. The pilot developed audit and planning tools and identified practical approaches that could overcome a wide range of barriers.
hear from keynote speakers including Terrie Alafat, Director of Housing Strategy and Support, CLG, on how the new approach fits with future homelessness strategies
hear about the partnerships formed between local authorities and their provider partners
explore their experience of the MOPP approach and how it links with local homelessness strategies
learn about the MOPP tools and practical solutions to local barriers
Further info and booking www.homeless.org.uk/developyourservice/events/calendar/move%20on You can either book online or print the flyer and fax back your completed booking form to 020 7960 3011.
Homeless Link members receive a discount on conference fees for this event.
(see below for special membership offer for Housing Justice UNLEASH member organisations)

Westminster Churches Together Linking up on Homelessness Conference
Are you concerned about homelessness In Westminster? Do you or your church help people who are homeless or on the margins? Do you see rough sleepers or street drinkers in your neighbourhood?
Come and find out what is going on about these important social justice issues. Come and connect with church and government responses to homelessness in Westminster.
This conference is for churches and Christians of all denominations in Westminster, organised jointly by Westminster Churches Together and Housing Justice UNLEASH.
Saturday 24th March 2007 9.30am - 1.00pm
Central Hall Westminster, Storey's Gate London SW1H 9NH
Lunch and refreshments provided - Suggested donation £3
Further info or to book a place email:a.murray@housingjustice.org.uk

SHELTER New Directions Seminar
New Directions in Street Homelessness - A good practice seminar
London, Thursday 29 March 2007 10.00am – 4.00pm
If you are wondering what the new thinking is around tackling street homelessness, this event is for you. Workshops on key issues, including projects in rural and urban locations. The event is to mark the publication of New Directions in Homelessness, and each delegate will receive a free copy. See the attached pdf for details.
Further info from goodpractice@shelter.org.uk

The Good Book?...How the Bible can be used creatively in urban mission
Free one day workshop Wednesday 18th April 9:45am-3:30pm
Shaftesbury Christian Centre, Battersea
Lunch provided, £3 please
Booking essential
Traditional approaches to Bible study can be alienating for people in urban areas affected by deprivation, who tend not to use books as their preferred way of learning. Unlock has developed creative approaches to Bible study, specifically designed for urban contexts, where text based approaches can be a barrier to exploring personal faith.
The day will include:
Creative approaches to using the Bible in urban mission
What works and what doesn’t work
Helping urban disciples relate the bible to their day-to-day lives and experiences
Dawn Lonsdale of Unlock is the day's facilitator. She is passionate about people who are excluded and doesn’t believe anyone should be left out of the opportunity to explore and grow into their personal faith.
For more info or to book contact Jill Clark on 0208 239 5546 or email jclark@shaftesburysociety.org

Downing St petition against the destitution of Asylum Seekers
There are currently 520 signatories to the Downing Street website petition protesting against the destitution of asylum seekers. Possibly not such a popular cause as the petition against road pricing with its 1.8 million signatures? Come on, lets show them!
"We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to urge him reverse his terrible inhuman and degrading policies towards Asylum Seekers."
http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Asylum/#detail

Join Housing Justice UNLEASH
If you find this bulletin useful, you might like to support our work by joining as an Individual Supporting Member or as a Member Organisation.
Both categories of membership give these benefits:
Supporting the work of Housing Justice – contributing to the prevention of homelessness and bad housing
Receiving our regular Newsletters and an Annual Report. NB The next edition of the UNLEASH newsletter will be going out to our members and supporters at the end of this month
Invitations to a programme of events, workshops and conferences
Opportunity to feed into Housing Justice UNLEASH priorities and campaigns and connecting with the work of HJ’s other nationwide projects and campaigns: Regenerate, Homelessness Sunday and the CHAS (Housing Advice) network.
If you would like to join as an individual please fill in the slip at the bottom of the page, and email back to me.
Member Organisations additionally benefit from -
Free training for Volunteers
Free email subscription to Housing Justice Digest, a valuable weekly round up of all the news on homelessness, housing and related current issues
Reduced rate membership of Homeless Link
For more info please get in touch with me or visit our website

best wishes,
Alastair

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Supporting Membership
Supporting Members are individuals who:
Support the work of Housing Justice – contributing to the prevention of homelessness and bad housing
Receive our Annual Report
Receive invitations to a programme of events such as speaker meetings, workshops and conferences
Will have opportunities to feed into Housing Justice UNLEASH priorities and national campaigns
Receive at least 12 email news bulletins and 4 Newsletters per year, including updates on HJ’s other nationwide projects and campaigns: Regenerate, Homelessness Sunday and the CHAS (Housing Advice) network.

For further information go to the Support Housing Justice webpage>>