Supported Housing

Floating Support

NSH's Floating Support Service is a major provider of housing related support within North Somerset. The service operates for both public and private rented sectors and owner-occupiers.

The aim of our Floating Support Service is to deliver a responsive client led housing related support service to maximise potential and create opportunity. We aim to meet this need by:

  • delivering a high quality responsive flexible client led generic support service
  • empowering service users to live independently within their own community
  • enabling service users to maintain their home and tenancy
  • developing a customer orientated housing related support service that reflects the needs of the service user and potential service user

The service delivery is in accordance with our contractual arrangements with the North Somerset Council Supporting People Team.

Who does the service support?

We recognise that the demands for housing related support are considerable and view the following list of vulnerable people as those who may require our floating support:

  • people with a physical and/or sensory disability
  • people with learning difficulties
  • people with mental health related problems
  • people with drug or alcohol related problems
  • people leaving an institution, or at risk of offending
  • refugees
  • people with AIDS or HIV
  • vulnerable persons with children
  • persons at risk of domestic violence
  • elderly vulnerable people
  • care leavers at risk
  • single homeless people in need of support
  • homeless families in need of support
  • teenage mothers
  • people with a previous history of repeated and unplanned loss of tenancy
  • people with a previous history of homelessness or rough sleeping

This list is not meant to be exhaustive or imply that people who fit a particular category necessarily require housing related support. Support will also be provided to clients with multiple needs.

What support is provided?

The floating support service aims to deliver a multi-task support service across all tenures which can provide the following:

  • establishing the tenancy
  • additional housing support
  • finance and budgeting
  • service brokerage for additional help

Homeless households are supported through:

  • the employment of specialist Hostel Support Workers, who will visit each household within the temporary accommodation as agreed with the tenant and provide on-going support and assistance both before and immediately after the start of any subsequent permanent tenancy
  • seeking to ensure that clients are capable of reasonable level of independence (not requiring 24 hour support)
  • support service provision as stated in the "Floating Support" section above
  • where appropriate, risk assessments completed with service users, which directly link with the support plan. Risk status will be reviewed jointly with senior members of staff

How to get support?

Access to the floating support service is via a referral form. Referrals are accepted from statutory, voluntary and private agencies including self-referrals.

Access to the homeless household support service is provided to households allocated temporary accommodation.

Temporary Accommodation Team

This team provides temporary accommodation for families and single households who have been assessed as statutory homeless.

NSH provides three hostels:

  • Masefield House, Weston-super-Mare
  • Shoplands
  • Lower Down Road, Portishead

In addition, there are domestic abuse units and a variety of other temporary accommodation units throughout the area.

Homeless households are supported through the floating support service detailed above.

This team also provides furnished tenancies for NSH tenants and "Stepping Stones" furnished training flats where care leavers are supported in gaining basic life skills.

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