Homelessness is sometimes seen as a temporary crisis – someone loses their job or has a relationship breakdown, finds themselves homeless and then gets back on their feet. But the reality is far more complex. Homelessness can become a cycle that is extremely hard to break free from.
The cycle of homelessness is where individuals find themselves homeless, temporarily find shelter, but then end up back on the streets, more often than not, due to systemic barriers, personal issues and a lack of support. These include:
- Lack of affordable housing – rising rents and a shortage of social housing in the UK, mean it is almost impossible to find long-term stable housing without financial support.
- Unstable employment – someone who is homeless cannot be in paid employment due to the lack of an address. Those who are in precarious living situations are often in low paid, part-time work and therefore find it difficult to save for a deposit, cover rent or pay household bills.
- Mental health and addiction – these are both a cause and a consequence of homelessness. With no access to ongoing healthcare, treatment and emotional support, these challenges are almost impossible to overcome.
- Trauma and domestic violence – many homeless people are fleeing domestic abuse or traumatic home environments.
- Criminal records and discrimination – people with criminal records often face discrimination when applying for jobs or housing.
More Than Just A Bed And A Roof
Breaking the cycle requires long term, holistic support. Stable housing, mental and physical healthcare, employment opportunities, social services and compassion. Unfortunately, all too often, people only receive temporary help – a shelter and a meal for the night. As soon as the support disappears, the underlying issues take them back to square one.
Breaking The Cycle With CENS
We work tirelessly to help our residents break this cycle. Our accommodation in the main shelter offers a clean safe space for all residents whilst they take the first steps towards independence. Providing a bed and a meal is only the start of our support. Our close links to other support groups and charities means we can provide mental health support, help with addictions, counselling, guidance through the often complicated housing and benefits system and job training.
Once we feel a resident is ready to take those crucial first steps towards independent living we can help them find suitable housing. We also have our CENS move-on accommodation options in Al’s Annexe next door, and Mersea Road. We maintain close ties with these residents, ensuring that the support is always there if needed. Residents can live independently and securely, with the safety net of CENS just around the corner. Our aim is to equip all our residents with the tools they need to break the cycle, and our results prove that this is working, with 46 positive move-ons already this year.
Hannah one of CENS’ support workers meeting with a resident to discuss resettlement options and help with applying for jobs.
Al’s Annexe one of CENS move-on projects. Named after a former support worker who sadly passed away.
You can help too. If you’d like to donate and support our Pay 4 A Stay campaign, then please text CENS to 70085 or scan the QR code below. Alternatively, head to our Donate Page at the bottom of the screen to make a one-off donation or choose to become a monthly donor. Let’s break the cycle together.
If you find someone who is homeless and in need of help, please direct them to CENS or get them to do a StreetLink application. StreetLink can be used by anyone in England and Wales to send an alert about someone who is sleeping or preparing to sleep rough. StreetLink helps existing outreach teams by alerting them to people sleeping rough.
