Housing the homeless during the Coronavirus outbreak

Published: 27 March 2020

Housing teams from Exeter City Council have been working around the clock to find emergency accommodation for rough sleepers during the coronavirus outbreak.

In line with government guidance issued today (Friday 27 March) and funding made available to help the street homeless for at least the next 12 weeks, ther City Council has been able to accelerate work to find temporary housing for those without accommodation.

Working with local partners and the community and voluntary sector, including CoLab, Keychange, Julian House, BCHA, St Petrocks and Bread of Life , the Council has worked to ensure that in time for this weekend, everyone who is currently sleeping outdoors has safe accommodation to come into.  

“Our current approach is to accommodate as many people as we can before the weekend, with the relevant emergency support in place,” said Bindu Arjoon, Director with responsibility for homelessness.

“We will continue to work to ensure we engage with a wider group of partners to provide support over the coming weeks,” she added.

The council is still looking to find additional accommodation and would ask hotels and other accommodation providers to make contact if they have suitable accommodation that they are willing to be used to support local residents. Please email housing.advice@exeter.gov.uk