Prison release or Youth Detention advice and information

Threatened homelessness

You will be considered to be threatened with homelessness, if you have no accommodation that you have a right to return to (or cannot safely return to) on your release, if your release will occur within 56 days. This means you can approach any local authority in England, and make a homeless application. We will assess your needs, and draw up a Personal Housing Plan, to help you resolve your housing problem, perhaps using some of the options described below.

If you are homeless now

If we cannot prevent you becoming homeless, and you have nowhere to go now, a Housing Advisor will decide if you have a priority need. If there is a reason to believe you are in priority need, you will be provided with temporary accommodation while we make further enquiries into your situation. The Housing Advisor will consider whether you are more vulnerable than an ordinary person, and will take into account the effect on you of your imprisonment, in making this assessment. However, if we cannot establish a local connection with South Cambridgeshire, you may be referred to another local authority with which you do have a connection. The local connection rules can be found on the Council’s website. There are no prisons in South Cambridgeshire, but if you are detained within a local authority area, this will not give you a local connection to that area.

Whether South Cambridgeshire or another Council accepts a duty to relieve your homelessness, that Council will work through your Personal Housing Plan with you, and decide what housing is suitable. If nothing can be found within 56 days, the Council will go on to consider whether they owe a duty to offer accommodation. This duty will be owed if the Council decides you are in priority need, and are not homeless as a direct result of something you have deliberately done, or not done. In some circumstances, if you knew that your offending would result in the loss of your last settled home, you may be considered to be ‘intentionally homeless’. This means the Council would not have a duty to provide housing directly.

Hostels and Supported Housing

There is a hostel in Cambridge that locally-connected single homeless people can present to. It is called Jimmy’s, and is located at 1, East Road, Cambridge CB1 1BD.

Once you are a guest at Jimmy’s, you can be considered for ‘move-on’ supported accommodation.

Single Homeless Service

If you have very low support needs, and your primary issue is housing only, it is possible that you would be eligible for the Single Homeless Service. This service links eligible single people to rooms in shared houses. You will need to undergo a detailed assessment for your suitability.

Getting on the housing register (Home-Link)

Many people struggle with raising a deposit for private rented accommodation. There are a couple of options for help: Change grow live (CGL) administer loans for deposits for park homes. Homeless clients of the Street Outreach team can be considered for this service.

We might be able to assist by referring you to our Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme. Please speak to your Housing Advisor for further details.

Employment and Training

We know that your ability to find and keep somewhere to live will be affected, if you don’t have a job, or job prospects. We can refer you to New Horizons or CHS Group, for targeted help with getting you job-ready.