A HOMELESS task force is being set up to tackle the growing problem in Warwick district.
A recent homelessness summit in Leamington, organised by MP Matt Western, was attended by some 20 support organisations and council chiefs. It was agreed a joined-up approach was key to helping those without a roof over their head.
Warwick District Council has now sent invitations to organisations working with homeless and rough sleepers in the district to form a task force to look at the complex issues involved, from drug dependency to mental health problems.
District housing spokesman Coun Peter Phillips said: “This event really did highlight how complex these issues are and that no one agency can resolve the problems facing this vulnerable group of people in isolation.
“It has also further justified our decision to form an action group, with the aim of pooling together the expertise and resources we have in our community to find practical solutions.”
And district council head of housing Lisa Barker also welcomed the setting up of a task force.
She said: “I started my career as a frontline worker in hostels caring for the homeless, so I am fully aware of the reality of the situation and the need for us to address a range of very difficult issues from mental health, substance abuse to unemployment, physical abuse, family breakdown, crime and debt.
“The council has already started to work on projects we have identified in our homelessness strategy, but to take these forward successfully we need to form a group made up of people who are in day to day contact with those affected.”
The first meeting of the Warwick District Homelessness Strategy Delivery Group will to take place at Leamington Town Hall on Thursday May 3 at 10am.
