Rough sleeping hub to reopen over summer

A rough sleeping hub is to reopen during the spring and summer months to support people facing homelessness in Liverpool.

A planning application has been submitted for a change of use for the existing hub building near the city centre between April and July.

Council documents describe the need for the centre to open once more as a "short-term, emergency response to the current housing crisis".

Subject to approval, the hub would continue to be delivered by The Whitechapel Centre, a charitable organisation that works with rough sleepers and other vulnerable people.

A planning statement said the hub would be open every night during the four-month period.

Services would be provided from 20:00 to 08:00 BST daily, with capacity limited to 30 people.

The planning statement said the service will only be available to those seen "bedded down sleeping" by the organisation's outreach team. Anyone who has accommodation will not be allowed access.

People assessed as sleeping rough will be able to stay overnight until accommodation is found.

Liverpool's trend of rough sleeping ticked upwards throughout 2024 compared to the same period 12 months earlier, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The average number of people seen each night rough sleeping between April and September 2024 was 30, an increase on the average of 22 people seen per night over the same period in 2023.

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