The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has taken a step towards improving the digital service aimed at ending rough sleeping.
It has signed a contract, valued at £849,000, with social housing software provider Home Connections for the provision of the service. The contract is set to run for two years with an option to extend for two more.
This will build on the existing StreetLink system, which has been in place since 2012
The earlier tender notice indicated that the Rough Sleeping Directorate in DLUHC wants the service to be open for members of the public to alert local authorities and their outreach teams when they see someone sleeping rough. This will enable staff to access information to find the person as soon as possible.
The DLUHC strategy for ending rough sleeping, published in September 2022, includes a commitment to continued funding and improvements to StreetLink, reflecting advances in the technology and the aim of making it easier to use and improving the quality of referrals.
The upgraded system will include a mobile app and provide outreach workers with information such as location details and a description of the person sleeping rough. It will also provide data for assessments of rough sleeping by relevant organisations.
Home Connections is a non-profit software house and a social enterprise, wholly owned and controlled by local authorities and housing associations across the UK. Its website says it provide 'best of breed' technology, software-as-a-service, platform-as-a-service and consultancy and that it has over 200 local authorities, registered providers, social enterprises and private sector customers.
