The NELFT Rough Sleepers & Mental Health team has received recognition from Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London.

What is the Rough Sleepers & Mental Health Team?

The team consists of a Clinical Lead, a Community Mental Health Nurse and a Mental Health Social Worker, a part-time Psychologist and a Peer Support Worker.  It was set up as a pilot, funded by the Greater London Authority and the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government for two years from April 2020. Just as the team started, the country went into lockdown, due to the COVID-19 pandemic! This totally changed the landscape for rough sleepers, however the committed team members continued to work with people sleeping rough or in temporary accommodation throughout this time. 

The team works across the four NELFT London Boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, Havering, Redbridge and Waltham Forest, providing mental health assessment and treatment to rough sleepers and those who have been placed in temporary accommodation under the Covid “Everyone In” initiative, or due to SWEP (Severe Weather Emergency Protocol). 

They engage with marginalised people aged 18 and over who are not currently receiving support and link them in with mental health or other services as required. They work closely with the Street Outreach services, Substance Misuse services and with Local Authorities and housing services in each area. The staff liaise with other NELFT teams, such as in-patient wards, AMHP services, HTT’s, AABIT’s, EIP’s and CRT’s across the four boroughs.  

How does the team engage with rough sleepers?

Due to previous experiences and multiple past trauma, this marginalised group of people are not able to access mainstream services. The team work to an assertive outreach approach, meeting people at their sleep site or homelessness centres hostels, cafes and other community locations. They holistically support rough sleepers with a range of issues and services. The support offered includes care and treatment of mental and physical health issues, and access to accommodation, benefits and legal advice to enhance their quality of life and enable them to feel part of society again.   

One individual who received support from the team said:

“Life was really tough. The team was a blessing in disguise really. Out of the blue. I don't know what I would have done without them to be honest with you. I was just grateful that there was someone there...I trusted them to help me. Everyone's an individual...I just wish everyone got the same kind of help.”

Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London said in his letter:

“It is clear the Trust has made a real success of the programme, establishing a high-quality service which has supported hundreds of people who otherwise would have been unlikely to access the care and treatment that they need.

Your commitment to the principles behind this initiative has been impressive – building strong partnerships with local rough sleeping services and delivering a truly flexible and personalised service for people sleeping rough across the boroughs you operate in.

The feedback my team have received from other stakeholders in the region has been excellent, with boroughs and homelessness services reporting that your service has completely transformed how people with mental health needs are supported and enabled many people to leave the streets.

The Trust has shown great commitment to ensuring the service continues after the two-year pilot period that I was able to fund, and I’m delighted that you have now secured NHS funding to continue the team’s work from 2022/2023 onwards.”

Julia Jones, Rough Sleeper & Mental Health Clinical Lead said:

“The team has been absolutely amazing, and to receive the acknowledgment from the Mayor of London is testament to all of them.  Receiving the extra funding from the NHS means we can continue to support vulnerable people and give them an opportunity to improve their mental and physical health. This can only be good news and I’d like to thank Sue Tatch (Service Manager) & Kevin Hellan-Sole for their ongoing support.”

Kevin Hellan-Sole, Assistant Director for Redbridge ICD worked with all the stakeholders to implement the original pilot, and to secure ongoing funding. Due to the pilot’s success, NHS England has agreed funding to enable further expansion of the team for another two years (2022/2024) via North East London Clinical Commissioning Group (NEL CCG). As a result of this, the team are currently recruiting for a Staff Grade Psychiatrist, further psychology input and admin support.