The Homes for Cathy alliance of housing associations, charities and local authorities will be developing and exploring more ways of housing and supporting homeless people at its annual conference next month.
Working in partnership with the Chartered Institute of Housing, Crisis and Inside Housing, the event — on 23rd March 2020 at London’s Congress Centre — is the third annual conference for the Homes for Cathy group, which was formed in 2016 on the 50th anniversary of the ground-breaking TV drama ‘Cathy Come Home’ and now counts over 100 housing associations, local authorities and charities as members.
David Bogle of Homes for Cathy and Hightown Housing Association said: “As housing and support providers, we must respond to the appalling numbers of families in temporary accommodation and rough sleepers. There is real enthusiasm amongst our growing numbers of member organisations for putting tackling homelessness at the heart of their social purpose and strategic priorities.”
The conference will explore recent national and regional initiatives including what interventions are really making an impact. The line up of speakers spans national and local government, housing associations, healthcare and the charity sector, including a keynote address from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Key topics to be addressed on the day include:
- Statutory homelessness obligations and how housing associations and councils can work together to deliver them.
- The transformative effect of psychologically informed environments (PIE) and trauma informed care (TIC) for people with complex needs.
- Improving partnership working between housing associations and local authorities.
- Best practice housing organisations can implement to contribute to ending homelessness, based on the nine Homes for Cathy commitments.
Tickets for the conference can be booked via the Homes for Cathy website. Any surplus generated from the conference will go towards funding the ongoing work of the Homes for Cathy group.
Header image shows last year’s Homes for Cathy event.
