SWINDON Council is to receive £25,000 of Government cash to tackle the growing problem of homelessness.
It is part of £3 million extra funding as a result of the new Homelessness Act 2002 which came into effect yesterday, giving stronger protection to homeless people. The Govern-ment has already set aside £10 million to help local authorities implement the new legislation but Swindon Council did not receive any of this.
Arelene Griffin, housing needs manager at Swindon Council, said: "Any additional resources are always welcome to ease the pressures of homelessness in Swindon."
The number of people that the council has an obligation to re-house will increase as a result of the new rules.
From now on, new groups of people will be given priority for housing, such as 16 and 17 year olds, ex-offenders, people leaving care and people fleeing all forms of violence. Previous-ly, priority cases were people made homeless as a result of an emergency, pregnant women, families or people vulnerable because of disability.
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