Some of the people we work with are trapped in a spiral of offending. Without the right support, financial help and housing options when they come out of prison, many ex-offenders will struggle to break this cycle. There is a strong link between offending and homelessness, with one in six prisoners reporting being homeless before they are taken into custody. 

Our specialist hostels support people leaving prison with a stable environment in which we can work with them to access support services and tackle the underlying issues that may lay behind their offending behaviours.   

We give people the opportunity to break the cycle, working with them not only to find places to live, but to gain the skills and qualifications they need to work towards independence. 

Preventing homelessness among people leaving prison 

In October 2018 SHP became a truly pan-London charity for the first time when we embarked on a partnership with MTCnovo and the National Probation Service (NPS) to deliver a London-wide housing support service.  Made up of Housing Advice Workers, community based floating support staff and a PRS access team working collaboratively, we work in close partnership with probation services to support medium to high risk offenders leaving prison to access, secure and sustain accommodation at this critical time. 

Over the past year we have supported 657 people leaving prison to secure and sustain accommodation.