Moving on

Nearly all of St Mungo's accommodation is temporary. Successful resettlement is as much about building a client's resilience and wellbeing throughout their time with us as it is about facilitating an effective move. We want resettlement to be a positive experience, and the move sustainable.

We have a three year Move-on Strategy 2011-2014 called "A personalised approach to achieving sustainable resettlement." Its core aims are around continuing to improve move on rates, and achieve more sustainable outcomes, and personalising the service more within our Recovery approach. Two particular services are:

• Our innovative Move on Training (MOT) programme, through which clients are able to develop their lifeskills and build friendships with people who are going through a similar experience. The course is delivered by volunteers who have experience of moving from supported housing into their own home and can provided real-life insight into the reality of moving on.
• Our award-nominated PAL (Peer Advice Link) helps clients make the transition to independent living and establish ongoing community support networks. Clients are supported by peer advisors who have experienced moving from services themselves. The service is offered through home visits, a phone line, and a drop-in service. The Peer Advice Link (PAL) project has been awarded the Approved Provider Standard (APS), the national benchmark for safe and effective practice in mentoring and befriending, from the Mentoring and Befriending Foundation.
• We are also developing a new service PAL Flatmates for clients who want to move-on to shared accommodation in the community. We help clients who are ready and able to move into private rented shared accommodation with other clients. We are reliant on using accommodation through the private rented sector for our clients if they are not eligible for a council or housing association home. If you are a private landlord interested in renting to our clients, please contact 020 7608 4712.

Read more about homeless people and resettlement in the FOR HOME study (May 2011), conducted by Tony Warnes and Maureen Crane at the University of Sheffield, with St Mungo's and five other leading homelessness organisations.