Supported housing provided for young people in South Glos through a new partnership

From April 2022, young people will be provided supported housing at Charles England House, through a partnership between 1625 Independent People (1625ip), Bromford House, and South Glos Council.

1625ip have been providing specialist services for young homeless people, care leavers and teenage parents in South Gloucestershire for 27 years.

‘Having worked alongside colleagues at Charles England House throughout the years it is fantastic to be working alongside great partners in Bromford and South Gloucestershire Council to deliver quality supported housing at this site’ said Dom Wood, CEO of 1625ip.

1625ip will be working in partnership with the owning registered provider, Bromford, to ensure we meet the needs of the young people and provide high quality housing.

South Gloucestershire Council’s Cabinet Member for Children and Young People Cllr Sam Bromiley said: “It is great that by working with our partners we are able to provide this type of housing and support to vulnerable young people here in South Gloucestershire.

“We want all of our young people to have the best possible start in life and some, including young parents and those at risk of homelessness, need additional support to achieve this. The service delivered here will give them the start they deserve by providing a springboard to independent living and enabling them to move into their own homes with the support they need around them.”

The young residents are all aged between 16 and 24. The project will help meet a need in South Gloucestershire to provide support for young parents with children, expectant mothers and young people from a range of other backgrounds, including young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

Young people are at the heart of their work, and ask themselves, ‘is this good enough for my child?’. Staff are trained and supported in providing trauma-informed support and are confident at responding to young people’s emotional and practical needs.

1625ip have innovative approaches to relationships with young people using psychologically informed approaches. Staff use trusting relationships to help establish a secure base from which a young person can develop stability, skills and social networks and plan for a positive future. This enables young people to progress towards independence and long-term outcomes. Staff provide a strengths-based approach for each young person, finding out what they value and enjoy, understanding their talents, building on their interests, and showing belief in them.

At Charles England House, 1625ip will deliver activities to develop skills and confidence. 1625ip will teach self-care and domestic skills through one-to-one support, practical sessions, and group work such as creating healthy meals on a budget and kitchen hygiene. They will offer courses including Maths, English, First Aid training, and a pre-tenancy course covering self-care, safety in the home, health and nutrition.

1625ip’s Education, Employment and Training workers will help young people identify their interests, values, and aspirations, explore opportunities together and help with job and college applications and interviews.

1625ip has strong relationships and partnerships with statutory, voluntary, community and business sector partners. For example, their mentoring project harnesses local support to enable positive community-based relationships and successful progression. They also have partnerships with employers to offer local opportunities including work experience, apprenticeships, and guaranteed interviews supported by their trained workplace “buddies”.

1625ip will use their networks to build strong voluntary, statutory and business sector involvement at CEH to enhance everyone’s commitment to these young people.

If you’re interested to know more, or want to find out how you can support young people at Charles England House, please contact comms@1625ip.co.uk