Shared Health Foundation

New Hope in the Deep End Podcast episode out now!

We chat with Danny Beales MP about his passion for ending homelessness, his childhood in TA, and his hopes for the future.

Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0xBLbcD6sY3h3Btp4bSdfL?si=8c81dbecf5de4147

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5NiSLOuRT0

Danny Beales 2 Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

It was truly inspiring to see politicians and professionals from across the health, education, housing, legal and VCFSE sectors come together, passionate about tackling the temporary accommodation crisis and driving tangible change through solutions that place lived experience’s voice at their heart.

It was particularly encouraging to hear the Government’s commitment to improving temporary accommodation for children and families, reflected in Minister for Homelessness Alison McGovern MP’s keynote speech at the conference.

Thank you to The Magpie Project, CARIS Families and Cardinal Hume Centre for sharing frontline insights into supporting families in TA; to Cratus Group, Portakabin, PJ Livesey and Cornerstone Place Ltd for showcasing practical housing solutions; to Prof Katherine Brickell, Ysabella Hawkings, Thea Grattidge and Leila Baker for highlighting the particular challenges faced by neurodivergent children in TA; Siobhain McDonagh MP and Jim McMahon MP for their insight into campaigning for better temporary accommodation for families and children; and to Made By Mortals for leading a creative audio workshop that immersed attendees in the human reality of the TA crisis.

Currently, there are over 176,130 homeless children in England living in temporary accommodation. Many are living in dangerous conditions with limited support, far away from their school, GP and community. The educational attainment of children plummets when they become homeless. The barriers to healthcare increase, and children’s health and development suffer. For neurodivergent children, living in temporary accommodation can be especially challenging, yet the effects of homelessness specifically on children with neurodivergences remain significantly under-researched.

For years, the Shared Health Foundation has worked collaboratively across sectors with a singular mission - to reduce the impact of temporary accommodation and homelessness on children. We are incredibly proud of the tangible changes this work has made for families, supporting them on their journey out of homelessness.

Shared Health’s ongoing campaigning and cross-sector collaboration have led to real policy changes, most recently reflected in the Government’s Child Poverty Strategy and National Plan to End Homelessness. This progress is summarised in our video, “The story so far; Homeless families policy from the Shared Health Foundation”, which you can watch here: https://youtu.be/I-QccJnWxtM

The work is far from over. Join us as we continue to dare to hope and work towards the day when every child will have a safe and stable place to call home.

New reports by the Shared Health Foundation: "The Together Service: A Five-Year Review" and "Cradling Maternal Disparities: No Crib for a Bed".

The reports summarise Shared Health's work over the past five years in supporting homeless women and families through the pregnancy journey: from preconception, through to the postnatal period, with a focus on the importance of the first 1,001 days of life. Both The Together Service and The Crib - Baby Bank's Homeless Families Project are trauma-informed services addressing maternal and reproductive health inequalities through providing holistic support for women and families facing multiple disadvantage.

The findings show that offering a universal service based in a primary care setting and collaborating with families to develop the service further has enabled engaging with some of the most disadvantaged groups. This approach has contributed to positive outcomes, including helping women to experience safer and healthier pregnancies and births, improving parent-infant relationships, parental mental health, and family functioning.

Read the reports at https://sharedhealthfoundation.org.uk/publications/

New Hope in the Deep End Podcast episode with Agatha Phiri, Founder of Agatha's Space CIC, is out now!

We chat about her lived experience of temporary accommodation, activism and making a difference locally and nationally.

Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6k8Gn5PGz0SekFbj6E0Tcz?si=2bcaf4281a714afd

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/1mpMv3JlAro

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Conference!

What a great day of bringing together politics, health, education, housing, lived experience and best practice, focusing on strategic next steps and changing temporary accommodation for families and children.

📢 New Hope in the Deep End Podcast episode out now!

We chat with Siobhain McDonagh, Chair of the APPG for Households in Temporary Accommodation, about her political beginnings, career and interest in social housing and temporary accommodation.

Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4lapeVP9HBePqfm3zZjR5k?si=15J_JKF-QTGIB1WMzYnFRw

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/30DmMiTaVjE?si=vU5hRqTDZmH63X6N