Brixton Pathway to Homes

• Total amount of funding you are requesting: £15,000

Forward Horizon CIC is applying to THINC for core costs toward a six-month housing support and move-on project in Brixton. This funding will enable us to work intensively with 24 households currently living in temporary accommodation and help them to secure long term homes.

• What will your project deliver?

This project, Brixton Pathway to Homes will combine personalised casework with tenancy skills training.

We will provide:

• One-to-one housing support to help clients understand their housing rights, access private housing, social tenancies and develop tenancy-readiness skills.
• Tailored action plans focused on budgeting, income maximisation and digital confidence (including managing Universal Credit and searching for homes online).
• Regular training on employability and navigating the housing system, this will build both confidence and peer support networks.
• Post move-on support to break the cycle of homelessness.

Our goal is to see at least 75% of participants progress into sustainable accommodation or demonstrate clear readiness to move on.

• Which groups or communities is your project intended to support?

The project will support constituents of Brixton who are:

• Living in temporary accommodation or at risk of homelessness.
• Often single parents, young adults or individuals from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds groups can suffer housing inequality.
• Facing barriers such as low income, insecure work, mental-health issues and lack of digital access.
• We will work closely with local partners, including housing officers, Jobcentres, probation officers and community organisations to identify those most in need.

• What difference will it make?

The need could not be clearer. There are now 127,000+ households in temporary accommodation in England (DLUHC, 2024), including 164,000 children (CIH, 2024). Research from Crisis (2025) shows that over half of people in emergency housing remain there for six months or more, often in poor conditions. These long stays in unsuitable accommodation can damage health and wellbeing.

Our project directly tackles this crisis. It will:

• Empower 24 households to break free from temporary accommodation.
• It will allow children to maintain extended family support, maintain friendships and improve attainment at school.
• Improve independence through structured, evidence-based support.
• Strengthen links between residents, landlords and local services.
• Reduce the cost of temporary accommodation. Councils are already overspending on temporary accommodation, which now costs over £1.8 billion per year nationally (LSE, 2024).

• How will this funding help your community?

Homelessness fragments communities.

By helping residents transition into secure, stable homes, Forward Horizon creates ripples of positive change and more local engagement.

Participants will also be encouraged to teach what they have learned to family and friends and this will help more people to avoid homelessness and leave temporary accommodation.

This project aligns with proven national research: evidence from Homeless Link (2024) and NIHR (2023) shows that housing-led and case-managed approaches significantly improve tenancy sustainment and helps break the cycle of homelessness.

• Why do you think your project will be a success?

Forward Horizon CIC’s leadership team brings 55 years of combined frontline experience in homelessness prevention, housing advice and community mentoring. We have worked within local authorities and voluntary organisations - we are 'insiders' who understand the 'system' and its limitations.

We take a housing-led, person-centred approach, blending practical know-how with empathy. Every participant’s journey is unique and outcomes will be will be measured to ensure accountability. We will work with local authorities, housing associations and local agencies for referrals and coordination.

• Any other important information

Temporary accommodation should never be a long-term solution, yet many Brixton families spend years in unsuitable housing, sometimes sharing bathrooms with strangers or raising children in single rooms.

Our work will help to restore health and well-being

This £15,000 investment will achieve tangible impacts for 24 households. Forward Horizon CIC builds on decades of experience, supported by independent research. THINC can be confident that their funding will help local people escape from temporary accommodation and transform lives.