SHP hostel celebrates official re-opening following transformation

Dennis Handfield House (DHH), a 39 bed service for single homeless people in Camden, has reopened following major improvement works.

The service, run by homelessness charity SHP, has moved back into the refurbished building on King’s Cross Road, providing a high level of support for people in the Camden Hostels Pathway.

The refurbishment was made possible through Places of Change funding of £800,000. In 2008, SHP was supported by Camden Council to bid for funding from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) to improve the reception area and create a new space within the building to increase the opportunities for clients to engage in a wide range of activities. The funding was supplemented by £300,000 recycled capital grant from Circle Housing Group, who own the building.

SHP Chief Executive Liz Rutherfoord said: “The development work has opened the building up to our clients and to the wider community. While we are setting up a film club, installing an IT suite and running a variety of workshops and courses to support clients’ recovery, we are also building capacity and strengthening local partnerships by enabling other key organisations to use the new space for training as well as for providing services to clients.”

Cabinet Member for Housing, Councillor Julian Fulbrook, said: “Prior to the works, one of the entrances to the building was narrow and unwelcoming and there was little space for communal activities with service users. The refurbishment has completely transformed the basement and ground floor area and offers a vastly improved environment for effective work to be done with the vulnerable tenants who live in DHH. This is the latest in a series of improvements we are making to our services for single homeless people.”

Managing Director of Circle Support, Anne Anketell, said: "By working with Camden Council, DGLG and SHP we have been able to secure funding and make the improvements needed to ensure that we continue to deliver high quality services and facilities for homeless people in Camden. This refurbishment has transformed Dennis Handfield House and will have a very positive impact on the lives of its service users for years to come."

The transformation of DHH is the latest in a series of improvements that are being made to the Pathway services for single homeless people in Camden, following on from the notable improvements made to Endell Street (completed in 2009) and Arlington House (completed 2010). Work is also in progress to create a new 60 bed Conway House service in Kilburn, due to open in November 2012.

These improvements have been made possible through committed partnership working between Camden Council, DCLG, Homes and Communities Agency, Pathway providers and housing associations.