You can read the full version of the e-bulletin here.

The reasons why participating in activities and sports is important 
Participating in activities has several positive impacts on people experiencing homelessness, both immediately and in the long term. Here are some of the key benefits:

– Social Connection and Community: Many experiencing homelessness feel isolated. Engaging in structured activities like sports, art workshops, or group discussions provides them with meaningful interactions, fostering a sense of belonging and community. This connection can reduce feelings of loneliness, combat depression, and build social networks that can provide support.
– Skill Building and Empowerment: Activities that focus on job training, education, or skill development offer a pathway toward self-sufficiency. Learning new skills – whether in technology, crafts, or practical life skills empowers participants, enhances their self-esteem, and prepares them for employment or independent living.
– Mental and Emotional Health Benefits: Physical activities like sports, yoga, and outdoor events contribute to better mental health, alleviating stress, depression, and anxiety. Artistic and creative activities can serve as outlets for self-expression, helping individuals process emotions and trauma in healthy ways.
– Restoration of Routine and Stability: Homelessness disrupts the daily routines and stability most people take for granted. Participating in scheduled activities reintroduces structure, offering a sense of normality. This routine can be foundational for someone working toward stability and re-entry into society.
– Pathway to Resources: Many activity sessions are integrated with additional support services, like healthcare, housing assistance, or employment opportunities. By engaging in activities, participants often gain access to these essential resources, providing critical stepping stones out of homelessness.
– Building Trust and Reducing Stigma: Regular participation helps to build trust with service providers and society, breaking down negative stereotypes associated with homelessness. Activities that allow people experiencing homelessness to contribute, volunteer, or share their talents also help foster community integration and reduce stigma.

Remember activities can create a positive feedback loop where personal growth, social support, and access to resources and services can work together to create a lasting impact for individuals experiencing homelessness.
A question to think about – how accessible are your activities across Manchester for people living in temporary accommodation or are rough sleeping on the streets?

Our Action Groups and ongoing work
Accommodation Action Group
This action group recently held an insight session in October 2024 to better understand the lived experiences of people accessing accommodation in Manchester. This work is being jointly led by Barnabus, Booth Centre and Justlife. 
There were eight consistent themes that arose from the discussions:
– Safety 
– Staff and support
– Rules of accommodation
– Location and move on
– Positive lifestyle changes
– Cleanliness
– Maintenance
– Facilities
The detailed feedback has been shared with the lead Commissioning and Contracts Service Manager at Manchester City Council and it is being used to inform their planning around the new Housing Related Support pathways.
The next insight session will have a focus on listening to the lived experiences of families in temporary accommodation and will take place in January 2025. If you would like further information, please email info@mhp.org.uk.

Activities and Wellbeing Action Group
The action group met in November and discussed the survey feedback on what activities people experiencing homelessness are involved in, what they would like to do and what are the barriers stopping people getting involved. 
The top 5 activities people would like to do are:
– Pottery
– Gardening
– Cooking
– Watersports and swimming
– Art
Members are looking at what existing activities are available, how to signpost people to them, looking at funding opportunities with partners already delivering these activities and what partners across the city could offer people living in temporary accommodation across neighbourhoods in Manchester. 
People were interested in accessing activities seven days a week with the majority of responses indicating a favourable time session as the morning or afternoon. 
The main reasons shared that stopped people taking part in activities were:
– travel costs
– not having suitable clothing or equipment
– having a disability they felt that would not be catered for
– living with a mental health issue

We are looking for donations of men and women’s sports clothes and trainers to enable people to participate in sport activities. If you are able to help, please email info@mhp.org.uk.
If you offer activities or sport sessions in Manchester that we can promote and raise awareness of, please email information to info@mhp.org.uk. 
Here is the current Greater Together Manchester Lifeskills sessions timetable. 
Back on Track has a range of range of courses, wellbeing activities and one to one support. Click here to join and here to see the timetable of courses available.

A big THANK YOU to Northern Lawn Tennis Club for donations of water bottles and women’s sports clothes to support women experiencing homelessness to participate in sports activities. 

Women’s Rough Sleeping Census Click here to read a presentation on the key findings of the Women’s Rough Sleeping Census that has recently taken place in Manchester. Thank you to Katie Parker, Project Manager in Commissioning, Manchester City Council for sharing this information.

A focus on Walking with the Wounded Walking With The Wounded provides personalised support to ex-service personnel who are struggling since leaving military service. As a veteran’s charity based in Manchester, they can help with employment, mental health, and support care coordination. They empower those who’ve served and their families to find purpose, rebuild their lives and contribute to their communities. Any veterans wishing to access support with Care Coordination, Mental Health, or Employment can do so by calling 0330 058 5800. Further information, support and referral forms can be found on the Walking with the Wounded website. You are able to self-refer and refer people to Walking with the Wounded directly using this referral form. Click here to access the The Armed Forces Covenant for Front Line Workers e-learning from Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

Health and Homelessness

Homeless Dental Outreach Clinics
Please note new opening times and that Revive is now trading as Rodericks Dental Partners. 
Rodericks Dental Partners runs Homeless Outreach Clinics from the Ancoats Primary Care Centre every Tuesday and Wednesday. 
– Tuesday from 10am till 12pm.
– Wednesday from 9am till 11.00am.
These clinics are emergency clinics to get the patient out of pain. People can turn up between these times, sit and wait to be seen. Call 0161 274 1655 for further information. The address is First Floor, Ancoats Primary Care Centre, Old Mill Street, Manchester, M4 6EE. On arrival, people are asked to go to the community desk and let reception know they are coming to the outreach dental and they will be let upstairs.

NEW – Podcast on Dual Diagnosis from Pathway
Dual Diagnosis is a combination of mental health disorders and addiction – it is a common concern for people experiencing homelessness. This new podcast from Pathway has been created by their Lived Experience Group in partnership with Change Communication, and it was funded by the Co-Production Collective, UCL  This three-part podcast explores personal journeys from a lived experience perspective, raising awareness and promoting better conversations around the issues, including the challenges of dual diagnosis, experiences of stigma, barriers to healthcare, what works and what needs to change. You can check out all three episodes on Spotify here spoti.fi/3ZbEehr or via their website here bit.ly/40SRed6.

Creating pathways for health equity: strengthening knowledge translation systems
When  Dr Ligia Teixerial founded the Centre for Homelessness Impact in 2018, she was driven by a profound belief that robust evidence is essential for effective policy-making, coupled with the urgent stories of individuals like Sarah, a single mother whose health deteriorated while living in temporary accommodation. Her experience powerfully illustrates the intricate connection between health and housing stability – one that demands our immediate attention. Read her blog here.

Hepatitis C – Impact Report 2023 from Change Grow Live
This year’s impact report from Change Grow Live, captures the dedication and pragmatic effort made by so many towards meaningful goals in public health, and in the fight to eliminate Hepatitis C.

New Resources on MPox
New resources on MPox: what you need to know and how to stay safe from Groundswell.

Women, Homelessness and Health 
This research, conducted by Groundswell in 2020, found that 74 per cent of women who were homeless had a physical health issue and 64 per cent were experiencing mental health issues.
“The stress of their situation resulted in headaches, losing hair, stomach pain, irritation in their eyes, rapid heartbeat, panic attacks, chest pain and early menopause”

You can read the Groundswell full research report here. 

Drugs and Alcohol – Delivery of Key Programme Areas with Change Grow Live (CGL) Manchester
You can read this update from Change Grow Live that was provided to the Manchester City Council Health Scrutiny Committee on 6 November 2024. 

Blogs, Guidance, Journals, Research and Reports 
Oral Health and Inclusion groups
This blog from Pathway Fellow Dr. Sarah Kaddour, looks at the existing NHS dental system, the barriers to better care, and how innovative approaches to service design can address the oral health needs of some our society’s most vulnerable people.

How could primary care services prevent homelessness? 
This blog from the Centre for Homelessness Impact discusses the broader prevention agenda that involves creating and strengthening integrated systems of services and support that enable people to thrive, at local, regional and national level. 

Three ideas to make the most of the Government’s Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness
This blog from Dee O’Connell, Director of Policy and Programmes at Pathway, shares three ideas to make the most of the Government’s Inter-Ministerial Group on Homelessness.

Strengthening adult safeguarding responses to homelessness and self-neglect from King’s College London
This study explored how self-neglect is experienced by people who are homeless, and how this can be addressed through strengthening local adult safeguarding responses. Little is known about what constitutes ‘positive practice’ and the services and support that are needed to address this problem, particularly where it intersects with substance misuse and other extreme forms of deep social exclusion. Concerns have been raised by government about the adequacy of safeguarding, why there have been so few Safeguarding Adults Reviews into the deaths of people who are homeless, and whether learning from these reviews is being implemented.

In this 4-minute film, the NIHR Health & Social Care Workforce Research Unit present findings from a 2019-2023 national (England) research study on strengthening adult safeguarding responses to homelessness and self-neglect. The study was funded by the NIHR School for Social Care Research (England) and led by researchers at the NIHR Policy Research Unit in Health and Social Care Workforce at King’s College London.

Supported Housing Review 2023
This report from the Centre for Regional Economic and Social Research, Sheffield Hallam University presents the results of a large-scale study of the Supported Housing Sector, which aims to understand the demographics, size and scope of the sector and the forecasts for demand and supply of accommodation.
One of the key findings is that the provision of supported housing contributes to the health, wellbeing and socio-economic outcomes of those living in the sector. It supports people to transition to more independent living and enables some people to live within the community rather than in institutional care. 

Homelessness and the Budget 2024
The budget contained a lot of announcements that were of interest to the homelessness sector – some more positive than others – but we are still waiting on much needed clarity around where some funding will be allocated. If you are trying to work out what it all means for your homelessness service, do take a look at this Homeless Linkblog which explains some of the finer points.

The Domino Effect Campaign from Change Grow Live
The Domino Effect is an inspiring project created by the Manchester-based volunteers from Change Grow Live with lived experience. Drawing from their personal experiences of addiction and recovery, they have developed a passionate and compelling multimedia campaign. The project aims to raise awareness about the generational impact of addiction and to highlight the positive effects that recovery can have on families, friends, and communities.

Resources, Services and Training
NEW –  Training module to support GP registration for people experiencing homelessness
People experiencing homelessness are known to have unmet health and social care needs, and experience significantly poorer health outcomes than the wider population. To address this, a new training module has been developed by NHS England to support GP practice staff and compliment the new online GP registration service – to reduce the risk of worsening health inequalities for the homeless population.

Manchester Community Central – Training and Events
Shelter – Training and Events
North Manchester Together VCFSE training 
North Manchester Together are providing a training and development programme over the next four months, with a combination of in-person and online sessions across various venues within north Manchester.

Niall’s Corner
A big thank you to Niall for compiling the following information, and feel free to share this information within your teams and with other organisations.
– Christmas and New year opening times contact details for indoor homeless provisions and help in Manchester
– Concerned over a street homeless or a vulnerable person? Office hours and out of hours telephone numbers for all Greater Manchester councils.
– Here is a contact list for indoor homeless provisions and help in Manchester.
– You can read the most up to date comprehensive list of food-banks and pantries covering all Greater Manchester 277 food-banks / pantries listed and compiled by Niall.