MANCHESTER City Council are to open up two public buildings to the city’s homeless next month in an attempt to tackle the surge in rough sleepers and provide sanctuary during the winter months.
The news follows an unprecedented move by former Manchester United stars Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs
The former Hulme Library building on Stretford Road and the former Beech Mount Children’s Home in Harpurhey will be the first in a series of empty council buildings to become available overnight, while the City Council inspect other empty buildings across Manchester for suitability.
The news follows an unprecedented move by former Manchester United stars Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs, who in October permitted a group of rough sleepers to take shelter inside their Stock Exchange building until work begins to convert it into a new boutique hotel and restaurant.
READ MORE: Giggs & Neville’s Gesture Is A Start – But The Issue Is Much More Complex
The Council will also open three former shared housing buildings around Manchester which, alongside extra spaces provided by faith groups, will create an extra 165 bed spaces this winter.
Rough sleepers will be referred to the new spaces by homeless organisations, which will also provide staff and support within the accommodations, including access to medical, mental health and addiction support.
Former Hulme Library will provide overnight shelter to rough sleepersCouncillor Paul Andrews, Manchester City Council’s executive member for adult health and well-being, said:
"We’ve spent months working on plans to open up empty buildings across the city to make sure nobody has to sleep rough on the streets this winter.
"This is a lengthy process, but we have now identified the first pair which we can open and we’re now continuing to carry out inspections so we can open more empty buildings in other parts of the city. As well as this, we've also reopened some buildings as shared houses, while faith groups are opening up other centres, meaning there will be a much wider range of bed spaces available across the city.
"While providing shelter and a roof over their heads is obviously a good start, what’s really important is working with charities, faith groups and our own homelessness services to make sure the right help and support is available to rough sleepers so we can help them make the first steps towards getting off the streets for good."
