Homelessness prevention

The team provides support for people who may be homeless or face the threat of homelessness.

Key Step identifies people at risk of homelessness and works to improve their lives by offering support and advice: this can include help with finding a home or a job, or building resilience and independence.

Key Step customer experiences

The team offers people tailored support to meet their needs and help clients to take greater control of their lives. The project can help with:

• matching clients to the most appropriate support
• identifying shared housing
• providing advice on benefits, debt and budgeting
• supporting clients to build their resilience and overcome barriers to finding work and financial stability
• building confidence and helping clients to live independently
• helping clients to maintain their tenancy and be part of a community.

Please note that due to welfare reform changes for people under-35, we can work with you to help you into work before the reforms come into force in April 2019. This also applies to people who are single and on jobseeker's allowance and have made a housing benefit claim after April 2016.

Contact

Thirteen leads on delivering Key Step, but to access the service please contact your local council who are partners in the project:

• Middlesbrough Council
• Stockton-On-Tees Borough Council
• Hartlepool Borough Council
• Redcar and Cleveland Council
• Darlington Borough Council.

The project is funded by the Department of Communities and Local Government’s homelessness prevention programme.