The No Second Night Out initiative says that while there may be many reasons why somebody sleeps rough for one night there is no reason why they need to spend a second night on the streets.
By ringing 0300 123 2041 or emailing info@whitechapelcentre.co.uk outreach workers from the Whitechapel Centre will provide a rapid response to try and ensure no new rough sleeper spends more than a single night on the streets.
Since No Second Night Out started in 2012, hundreds of people have been helped after people contacted the service, in the first six months of this year 160 calls were made to it.
Councillor Frank Hont, cabinet member for housing said: “We know there is a lot of concern about homelessness especially about rough sleeping as winter approaches and people are keen to help.
“One of the best ways they can do so is by phoning No Second Night Out when they see someone sleeping rough and every effort will be made to support people to come off the streets.
“We want to prevent the situation where rough sleeping becomes an entrenched way of life and the sooner people can be encouraged to come off the streets the better it is for them.
“There is a misconception among some people that those who are sleeping rough are doing so because there is nowhere for them to go. In fact we fund 750 temporary accommodation places and the outreach workers have been successful in persuading many to come off the streets- up to 27 in one calendar month this year.
“Not everybody will accept the offer of help and support but we are doing our best to try and see no one ever needs to sleep for a second night on the streets and we are asking the public to play their part by contacting No Second Night Out when they see somebody sleeping rough.”
David Carter, Chief Executive of the Whitechapel Centre, said: “Sleeping on the streets is dangerous and can be life-threatening, particularly as the winter approaches and the weather turns colder.
“We would encourage people to save the number into their phone and give us a call, anytime, when they see someone sleeping rough in Liverpool.
“Everyone’s situation is different and we work with each person to offer the best support and appropriate accommodation available to them. For most people coming indoors into accommodation happens on the day they become homeless, but for some people it can take time – time to find the right solution that the person feels able to accept.
“We don’t give up on people until we have helped someone come indoors. Our outreach team is out every day and calls to No Second Night Out help us find people quickly, before they become entrenched on the streets. We can only do this with the help of the public and we really appreciate their calls.”
