Housing
56 Westover Road is the hub of the Bournemouth YMCA's
activities. It is also the central focus of our housing provision
for homeless people in the Bournemouth area.
Bournemouth YMCA provides short-term supported housing for men
and women between the ages of 16 and 60. With 97 beds spread over
three facilities on two sites, supported housing is provided on a
move-on basis; clients are able to remain in the Hostel for up to
two years before moving on - either to YMCA move-on accommodation,
or to external supported or unsupported housing.
Support
Each client is given a keyworker with who will work with them to
assess their individual needs. The keyworker will also assist the
client in achieving goals laid out in their personal Support Plan:
these may range from basic housing needs (obtaining benefits,
etc.), to finding employment, to maintaining a healthy positive
lifestyle.
Clients come from a range of backgrounds, and may be homeless
for a variety of reasons including relationship breakdown,
job-loss, as well as those who have completed addiction
treatment.
The Housing Team work with clients to encourage life skills and
a productive use of their time at the YMCA, as well as working to
ensure their safety and security.
In addition to the support provided by the Housing Team, there
are in-house counsellors trained in general support and specialist
drugs and alcohol counselling.
Within the YMCA there are many ongoing courses for clients to
get involved with. Futures Training provides Maths, English and IT
training; Faithworks offers budget coaching; and the YMCA's new
radio production project Hope4Me gives clients the opportunity to learn
radio editing skills in conjunction with Hope FM, as well as
attend a three-day residential at Sandyholme.
Clients are also able to access support from a wealth of
external agencies to meet their individual needs. From time to time
one-off courses are run such as Anger-Management, Alpha, and Life
Skills Training.
Drugs and
alcohol policy
Although the YMCA Hostel is not a dry house, clients are not
allowed to bring any alcohol into any of the accommodation units.
Any client returning under the influence of drugs or alcohol will
be refused entry.
The YMCA tests clients for controlled drugs on entry, and
randomly throughout their stay. This encourages clients to maintain
a drug-free lifestyle, and ensures that the Hostel and other
accommodation are safe places for those in recovery from
addiction.
Staff regularly conduct room searches to ensure that there is no
active drug use in the hostel.
Admissions criteria
Although we encourage all those in need of accommodation to come
in and talk to a member of the Housing Team, to be eligible for
housing a client must meet the following criteria:
- Aged 16 to 60
- A valid local connection:
- Resident in the Bournemouth area for 6 months in the last 12
(excluding Treatment)
- Resident in the Bournemouth area for 3 years in the last 5
(excluding Treatment)
- Have a significant, close family member resident in the
Bournemouth area for five years at the time of contact
- Employment in the Bournemouth area for at least 3 years
- Prison leavers with a referral from Dorset Gateway
Exceptions may be considered, such as those fleeing
violence.
At Present, we are unable to provide accommodation for
those:
- On the sex offenders register
- With arson or firearms convictions
- Released from prison on tag
- On methadone scripts or similar
Applying for Accommodation
Since the 1st December 2011, all referrals into SP-funded
Supported Housing must go via the Hub at the Town Hall. Please
visit the Customer Services Entrace on St. Stephen's Road or call
01202 451451 and ask to speak to Housing.
All general enquiries about the YMCA's Supported Housing should
be directed towards the Admissions Team via 01202 290451.
For more information about homelessness, please contact the
Housing Team or see the Homeless Support section of the
website.