Here is a link to the full version of the e-bulletin.

Interested in making a difference and volunteering for a homeless charity in Manchester?
Volunteering for a homeless charity in Manchester can be an incredibly rewarding experience, offering both personal fulfillment and a chance to make a tangible difference in your community. Here are several compelling reasons why you should consider it:
Make an impact - by volunteering, you can provide direct support to those in need, whether through distributing food, offering shelter, or assisting with employment services. Your efforts can help improve the quality of life for those experiencing homelessness.
Develop new skills and/or share your skills - volunteering can help you develop a wide range of skills, from practical ones like cooking and organising to skills like communication, empathy, and problem-solving. You can also share your existing skills around a specific theme, for example, website design, finance, woodwork, gardening, communications or marketing.
Meet new people - volunteering is a great way to meet like-minded individuals who are passionate about making a difference. You can build lasting friendships and expand your network, connecting with people from diverse backgrounds.
Enhance your CV - volunteering experience is highly regarded by employers. It demonstrates your commitment to community service, teamwork, and your ability to manage different responsibilities. It can be a valuable addition to your CV.
Gain perspective - volunteering with a homeless charity can provide you with a deeper understanding of the challenges faced on a day to day basis. It can help you develop empathy and a broader perspective on social issues, making you a more informed and compassionate individual.
Boost your mental well-being - Helping others can significantly boost your mental health. Acts of kindness and giving back to the community can reduce stress, and increase overall happiness. Knowing that you are making a positive difference can be incredibly fulfilling.
Supporting a charity - Homeless charities often operate with limited resources and rely on volunteers to support their work. By donating your time, you will be supporting a vital cause and helping to ensure that these organisations can continue to provide essential services to those in need.

You can reach out directly to a charity, visit their website for more information, and learn about the specific volunteer opportunities available. Many charities also offer volunteer training to help you get started.

Volunteering for a homeless charity in Manchester not only helps those in need but also enriches your own life in many meaningful ways. Consider taking the step to volunteer and contribute to building a more compassionate and supportive community.

Calls To Action
Accommodation Action Group
This action group has met for a second time and discussed their priorities for the year. These include the following that align with the actions of the Manchester Homelessness and Rough Sleeping strategy:
Accommodation standards - what exists, how are they applied, what is the process of reviewing them and how is lived experience used to influence changes.
Customer insight, lived experience and co-production - understand the current framework of how the views of people who are accessing accommodation in the city are collected, reviewed and used to improve services.
Policies and procedures - reviewing policies and procedures in light of lived experiences and feedback and partnership working with colleagues in the council.
Information - understand what information is provided to people accessing services and accommodation.
Key metrics - to provide an environment where stakeholders can contribute to decision-making and activities by developing and sharing key indicators and metrics around accommodation.
As this work is developing, if you are interested in joining this action group, please email info@mhp.org.uk.

Activities and Wellbeing Group
This action group has developed a short survey for people who attend your activities to understand what they enjoy, what they would like to see more off and what are the gaps.
Here is an online link and a downloadable PDF version of the activities questionnaire and your support in helping people to complete the survey and promoting it, is very much appreciated. Thank you to Greater Manchester Together for supporting this work.
Any paper copies of the questionnaire will be collected by members of the Activities and Wellbeing Action Group and collated with the online survey responses. If you need any paper copies printing out, please email info@mhp.org.uk 
An organisational survey about activities being delivered will be shared shortly via email to members. Please take the time to complete the survey.

No Wrong Door Action Group
The No Wrong Door approach for Manchester was co-produced by Inspiring Change and Shelter and outlined a set of principles that would improve outcomes for individuals with multiple and complex needs.
This action group is reviewing the principles with a view to holding a listening event in September 2024 to relaunch the No Wrong Door approach, in recognition of the changes in organisations, commissioning and since the Covid pandemic.
The four overarching principles within the No Wrong Door approach are:
Access
Through improving and regularly reviewing the access to services and support available for an individual, we are better able to ensure that our interventions are person-centred and asset based.
Information
Through utilising a shared data system or through improving information sharing, we are better able to access information, share information, reduce duplication and improve outcomes for individuals.
Practice
Developing our team, adopting psychologically informed approaches and creating a reflective environment will enable our services to be responsive to individual need.
Expertise
Through developing collaborative partnership approaches and adopting co-production, we will share knowledge to influence change, develop services and address gaps and inequalities. This will include experts by experience.
This action group has become part of Manchester Homelessness Partnership and continues to be led by Shelter. If you are interested in being part of this action group, please email info@mhp.org.uk.

Useful Information
Restricted Eligibility Support Service (RESS)
The Restricted Eligibility Support Service (RESS) has now completed its first year in operation. The Boaz Trust is working proudly with Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit, the Booth Centre and Greater Manchester Combined Authority to deliver this service. The Boaz Trust has been encouraged to see positive end of year statistics, which translate to real impact on people's lives. This financial year, a total of 123 people have accessed floating support from Boaz through RESS.

Niall's Corner
I volunteer at Coffee4Craig in Manchester who work with street homeless people. My role is the lead liaison worker for arranging bank accounts and birth certificates for homeless people with no identification. In my spare time I voluntarily compile food poverty lists amongst other information as they are a much needed and a well-used resource. This month you can read why it is important for street homeless people to be able to get a free copy of their birth certificate.

Blogs, Guidance, Journals and Reports

Radical safeguarding toolkit - Homelessness: Practice Tool (2024)
This co-produced practice tool shares information, ideas and inspiration for anti-oppressive approaches to safeguarding adults experiencing homelessness. It explores how social justice movements can shape the support and services we offer. The resource invites practitioners to reflect on the role of solidarity, autonomy and, power and accountability in their work. This was published on the 2 May 2024 by Research in Practice.

Evidence Note: Domestic Abuse and Homelessness
The Centre for Homelessness Impact has published a new evidence note which provides an overview of the evidence on the intersection between domestic abuse and homelessness, particularly focusing on women survivors. Their research shows that domestic abuse is a significant contributor to homelessness among women, with data from England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland highlighting its prevalence in homelessness applications, accounting for between 25 to 33 per cent of presentations to local authorities.

A slow violence: How immigration control forces people in Greater Manchester into destitution
This is a new report released by Greater Manchester Immigration Unit and the Boaz Trust, which finds that people in Greater Manchester are spending years, even decades, in destitution. One woman interviewed spent more than sixteen years trying to regularise her immigration status.
The report finds that as well as multiple barriers that exist in preventing people from escaping destitution, access to accommodation for people experiencing homelessness across Greater Manchester is highly inconsistent, with individuals (including a torture survivor and domestic abuse survivor) retraumatised by months of street homelessness or precarious living environments. This form of slow violence is found to damage people’s physical and mental health, pushing some towards self-harm and thoughts of suicide.
Alongside these findings, the report also makes a series of recommendations to national government and lays out what can be done to design destitution out of our city-region, building on positive regional developments in recent years. You can download a copy of the full report and the shorter policy briefing to read and share with your networks.

Health and Homelessness
Decaying Dentistry
This audio story from Karen, a Community Reporter for Groundswell reports on her experience of trying to access dentistry on the NHS - "If you're on a very, very low wage or if you're on benefits or if you're street homeless, you haven't got a chance."

New Needle Exchange Locations in Manchester
Change Grow Live Manchester are working with 29 pharmacies across Manchester to offer access to FREE and clean injecting equipment.

Hepatitis C Testing
Some people show no symptoms of having Hepatitis C , but symptoms to look out for include:
- Fever
- Tiredness
- No appetite
- Vomiting
Testing is quick, simple and free. Call Change Grow Live on 0161 823 6306 or send us an email manchester@cgl.org.uk to find out more.

Are you a service working with people experiencing homelessness?
Would you like copies of Groundswell accessible, co-produced health resources? Groundswell have health guides developed with, and for, people experiencing homelessness and those supporting them. You order them here.