Helping people who are sleeping rough in Lichfield

We have received several reports about a number of people who are sleeping rough in Lichfield city centre.

We are aware of the location of the majority of rough sleepers and have commissioned an outreach team, provided by Spring Housing Association, who are visiting sites to engage with people who are sleeping rough to identify their needs.

Spring Housing is also sourcing accommodation through the private and social housing sectors, which will be made available to anyone sleeping rough locally. They will also provide tailored support to each person housed, to make sure they are able to manage their tenancies. 

Belongings

We are also aware that some of the people who are sleeping rough are leaving their belongings unattended in public places. We are working across services to address this and will be leaving notices on or by unattended possessions warning that they can be removed and stored by the council if they are not retrieved. We have also asked the outreach team to make anyone who is sleeping rough aware they should not leave items unattended in public areas.

From the 1 January 2020, we will not issue warning notices but will collect the belongings and leave a notice to explain where they can be collected.