PCC urges rural groups to apply for crime prevention funding

We’re thrilled to announce that User Voice has secured multi-year funding from City Bridge Foundation, London’s biggest independent charity funder, to create a new flagship Hub at our London office.  Co-created with people with convictions, the Hub will be a unique resource supporting people leaving prison. Working alongside Prisons, Probation and the Voluntary Sector, it will act as a catalyst for change, harnessing the desire of so many people in the justice system to give back to their communities.  The Hub will provide mentoring, accredited training, and community volunteering opportunities, providing routes to stability through empowering people to rebuild their lives and contribute positively to society. We will also ensure that the Hub offers a holistic and connected service by partnering with a range of support organisations across London.  We are looking forward to sharing more as the Hub takes shape.  Photo ©️Andy Aitchison  #CriminalJusticeReform #LivedExperience #CommunityChange #Rehabilitation #LondonCharities Clinks Criminal Justice Alliance

600 young people. One historic project. Countless stories of resilience. In 2024, we were commissioned by Verian Group to recruit 600 young people aged 9–22 for Module 8 of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry. The study set out to understand how children and young people experienced the pandemic, how they adapted to change, and what impact it had on their lives. Reaching such a diverse group, from different ethnicities, genders, and socioeconomic backgrounds to seldom-heard voices such as those in care, detention, temporary housing, or seeking asylum, demanded a careful, strategic approach ✅ We worked beyond our 250,000+ participant database, partnering with youth organisations, community centres, charities, councils and safeguarding professionals to build trust and ensure every participant felt safe, respected and empowered to share their story 🙌 It was a privilege to play a role in such a historic project, supporting Verian Group in capturing the powerful stories of resilience, adaptation and impact from young people across the UK. Read the landmark report here 👉 https://loom.ly/Lnc0vHU #MarketResearch #ParticipantRecruitment #Covid19Inquiry #YoungVoices #ResearchWithImpact

🔍 Funding Update: Trust for London Refocuses Strategy Grants typically range from £40,000 to £80,000 per year for up to five years.  The following types of funding are available:  ✅ Project funding for discrete and time-bound pieces of work. ✅ Unrestricted funding for registered charities working solely to tackle poverty in London. 📌 Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. Trust for London has announced a significant shift in its funding approach, moving away from frontline service delivery to focus on tackling the structural causes of poverty across the capital. This means: Supporting new ideas that challenge unfair systems ✅ Backing sustained campaigns for policy change ✅ Funding advice work that connects directly to advocacy ✅ While their core priority areas remain—economic and social justice—applications under the migration priority are currently paused. 📎 Read more: https://lnkd.in/eq7TREhx Let’s keep building a fairer, more inclusive London. 💬 #FundingUpdate #TrustForLondon #SocialJustice #EconomicJustice #KingstonVCSE #SystemsChange #KVA

The Hidden Trap of Social Assistance This thanks Giving day gave me a reflection as an advocate for people of African descent, I've spent years witnessing a disturbing trend: a cycle of dependence perpetuated by the very systems designed to help. Many organizations serving African immigrants and marginalized communities, while well-funded through grants and donations, appear to be systemically keeping people "captive" in programs. The result is often perpetual poverty and homelessness, while the organizations themselves continue to secure funding year after year without achieving meaningful, lasting change for their beneficiaries. The Real Danger; Vulnerability Exploitation: I have personally witnessed organizations taking advantage of vulnerable clients, using their continuous state of need to justify ongoing funding. This turns the vulnerable person into a commodity. Service Duplication: There is massive duplication of services across the sector. Many organizations focus heavily on the funding opportunity rather than on genuinely innovative, progressive solutions tailored to the community's actual needs. Manipulation: Instead of empowering individuals toward self-reliance and progress, some organizations have morphed into manipulators, prioritizing their own operational survival over the self-sufficiency of the people they are meant to serve. We must ask: Are we measuring success by the number of grants received, or by the number of individuals successfully exiting the system and achieving true economic independence? We need a radical shift in approach. Our focus must move from managing poverty to eradicating it. This requires funding models that prioritize: Exit Strategies: Programs with clear, measurable pathways to self-sufficiency, employment, and homeownership. Accountability: Greater scrutiny on organizations to prove life-changing outcomes, not just activity reports. Collaboration, Not Competition: Organizations must stop duplicating basic services and start collaborating to fill critical gaps. If you are a policymaker, funder, or community leader, I urge you to look beyond the paperwork and investigate the true, long-term impact on the people we aim to serve. Let's redirect our energy and resources from maintaining a system of captivity to building a path to genuine freedom and empowerment. #SocialAssistanceReform #AfricanDiaspora #SystemicChange #NonProfitAccountability #CommunityEmpowerment #PovertyEradication

Partnering for impact: supporting Shelter’s mission to end the housing emergency 🏠 We’re proud to have partnered with Shelter, the UK’s leading charity tackling homelessness and housing injustice, on their 2024 Outcomes Tracking research. Shelter’s work goes far beyond advice and support. They campaign, advocate, and push for systemic change to make housing more affordable, secure, and fair for everyone. To help measure and strengthen that impact, our study explored how Shelter’s services are improving lives across the UK. What we did: 📊 Surveyed over 2,000 Shelter clients whose cases closed in 2024, using both online and telephone interviews to ensure accessibility and inclusion. Applied robust quotas and weighting to enable comparisons with previous years. 📊 Delivered detailed insights and outcome measures, brought to life through an interactive Forsta dashboard that empowers Shelter’s teams to explore the data, improve services, and demonstrate impact to funders and supporters. This was our first year delivering this important study, and we’re delighted to be continuing our partnership with Shelter for 2025. For more of our published social research findings, click here: https://lnkd.in/e-zKrJnD #ResearchForImpact #HousingJustice #SocialResearch #Partnership #ImpactMeasurement #Homelessness #ShelterUK

In April this year, Bega Valley Shire Council launched a podcast on the state of housing and homelessness in the shire. 'Unhoused – Voices from the Threshold' provides an insight into the lives of local people who have found themselves homeless, on the brink of homelessness, in transitional housing or unable to find stable accommodation. It gives a voice to the organisations and individuals working to provide support and services to these people, including charity groups, developers, local councillors and real estate agents. Sapphire Stories was commissioned to produce the 6-episode podcast, which is fully funded under the NSW Premier’s Department Social Cohesion Grant for Local Government. You can access the podcast from the Unhoused – Voices from the Threshold webpage on Council’s website: https://lnkd.in/g9esURTC The development of the podcast is an action from the Bega Valley Affordable Housing Strategy to create community awareness about homelessness.

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) aimed to provide more than just charity. Its direct cash payments to the unemployed and funding of local public works were strategically designed. The goal was to restore dignity by enabling people to return to work. Relief programs sought to empower individuals through employment. #FERA #unemployment #public works #dignity #employment #reliefprograms #FSOT

The U.S. spends $125 billion a year subsidizing homeownership — but when it comes to poor renters, support is treated as charity. 👉 Homeowners get unlimited tax breaks without waiting lists or invasive questions. 👉 Renters are forced to prove their “worthiness,” wait years for help, and face endless barriers. 👉 That double standard isn’t just unfair — it fuels homelessness and racial inequality. Paul Boden asks the real question: If housing is essential, why don’t we treat it that way for everyone?

Addressing homelessness and housing challenges is more important than ever and access to digital tools can make a real difference. Spencer House, part of the YMCA Brunel Group, provides supported housing for people aged 25+ who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Residents often arrive with almost nothing, making essential tasks like online banking, shopping, and benefit applications difficult. Our donated laptop gives them access to these services, helping residents regain independence and take steps toward securing their own accommodation, demonstrating how digital inclusion can empower residents and provide tools that are essential for rebuilding confidence and self-sufficiency. #digitalinclusion #secondlifeIT #technologyreuse #tech4good

Today is World Homeless Day (10th Oct), which raises awareness of the growing housing crisis and the urgent need to provide safe and secure homes for those most in need.   The latest figures highlight the scale of the challenge: • 327,950 households were owed support to prevent or relieve homelessness in 2024, a 5% increase on the previous year. • A total of 131,140 households were living in temporary accommodation in March 2025, 12% higher than in 2024. The total number of children living in temporary accommodation has now reached 169,050. • In London, 13,231 people were seen sleeping rough between April 2024 and March 2025, a record high and 63% higher than a decade ago. (Source: The Big Issue, 2025)   At SimplyPhi, we continue to work with local authorities, housing associations and charities to increase the supply of affordable homes and improve outcomes for vulnerable households.   Recent partnerships include: 🏘️ Hastings Borough Council, delivering more than 100 homes to reduce reliance on private temporary accommodation, saving an average of £350 per week per family home while providing safe, high-quality housing. 🏙️ Bristol City Council, providing 110 additional homes and helping to save £2.7 million per year in temporary housing costs. 💛 St Martin Of Tours Housing Association, completing a £2.2 million project to provide housing for people recovering from complex mental health issues. Our focus remains on supporting local authorities and partners to deliver safe, warm and affordable homes - creating stability for those most affected by the housing crisis.   #WorldHomelessDay #AffordableHousing #SocialImpact #Community #SimplyPhi