Among the nine commitments Homes for Cathy members pledge to meet are #3 ‘to offer constructive solutions to applicants who aren’t deemed eligible for an offer of a home‘, #4 ‘to not make any tenant seeking to prevent their homelessness, homeless‘ and #5 ‘to commit to meeting the needs of vulnerable tenant groups‘.
Providing life and tenancy skills training to tenants is a constructive way that housing associations can meet these commitments, reducing the risk of offering a home to someone who may have a history of failed tenancies; helping prevent homelessness for tenants who may be struggling to succeed in an existing tenancy; and supporting vulnerable tenants such as young people who may not have experience of independent living.
Our workshop will explore the challenges, practicalities and benefits of offering life and tenancy skills training to tenants, with guest speakers Rebecca White from social enterprise Your Own Place and Paula Tuck from Saffron Housing Trust discussing a new collaboration between housing associations in East Anglia which is bringing tenancy and independent living skills training to tenants across the region. There will be an opportunity for questions and discussion.
Guest speakers:
Rebecca White
Rebecca White is the CEO and Founder of Your Own Place. As a social entrepreneur, ex-local authority commissioner for social services and qualified secondary school teacher, Rebecca has years of experience working with people in a variety of settings.
Paula Tuck
Paula Tuck is Assistant Director of Customer Services at Saffron Housing Trust, part of Independent East, an informal alliance of five leading Norfolk and Suffolk social housing providers formed with the aim of improving services for tenants.