Controversial Devon cost-saving plan still in hiatus

Homeless charities are continuing to urge Devon County Council (DCC) to not stop funding support for homeless people after plans to do so were put on hold following a huge backlash. Last August, council leader John Hart said he had listened to members of the public and charities about the impact the proposed cuts could have and agreed to extend contracts with providers until the end of March 2024 to allow for more discussions.

It has since been extended for another three months until the end of June. The initial proposal by DCC was to cut £1.5m of annual funding shared between five service providers for homeless people.

It stated it provided the money despite not having ‘a statutory responsibility to do so’, and needed to balance the books.

DCC has insisted no decision has yet been made about its homeless funding in the next budget. At the meeting YMCA Exeter chief executive Si Johns and other homelessness prevention providers were due to speak again against potential homelessness funding cuts. It says it could be the future of service providers in jeopardy and the cuts won’t save the council any money and will actually cost them more.

YMCA Exeter claims adult social care costs for DCC will soar by almost 500 per cent. Through its current package, DCC is paying just over £35 a week to the organisation for around 100 young people every year to receive tailored, supported care as they come out of homelessness or care and move forward.

YMCA Exeter says if it is unable to continue providing this care, DCC could see an increase to its costs of more than £924,000 if young people are not receiving the preventable care they need at a critical time and are unable to move back into independent living.

controversial devon cost-saving plan still in hiatus

Si Johns, joint CEO of YMCA

Si said: “Not only will Devon County Council see their costs increase but ending funding at this point in the year is counterproductive. This year regulation is being implemented to ensure supported housing is the best value for money. If the cuts go ahead before the assessments have been made, excellent service providers may well be lost.

“Combined with that, the districts are looking to find ways to audit and fund the essential services in other ways other than through Devon County Council’s homelessness preventative funding. Stopping the funding prematurely risks the auditing being unsuccessful and essential services being lost.”

YMCA Exeter also argues that if homeless funding stops, the city could be faced with Housing Benefit and Adult Social Care costs of over £1.8 million a year. It says it is also concerned about the knock-on effect of removing preventative care increases the burden on police, hospitals and mental health services.

DCC initially proposed the homelessness funding cuts in February 2023. The response from the public consultation that followed led to 100 per cent of respondents saying ‘no’ to the funding cuts.

A spokesman for Devon County Council said: “No decision has been made with regards to our financial contribution to their contract, and we remain absolutely committed to working in partnership with our district and city councils to support those at risk of homelessness.

“We’ve extended our funding with homelessness support providers, including the YMCA, for an additional three months until the end of June to allow the county council time for further discussion as part of our budget setting process.”

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