Five years of HopeHomes

This summer, New Hope is marking five years since we opened our first HopeHome – a fledgling affordable housing scheme for people who have been homeless and are now ready to live independently.

Affordable housing is a significant problem for people wanting to live in Watford; the average rent for a one-bedroomed flat is £1,011 per month, with a deposit of £2,275 required to secure such a property. Such accommodation is out of reach for many people seeking to leave New Hope supported accommodation.

Our two HopeHomes (the second opened in 2018) provide good quality accommodation for people who are ready to live independently but are struggling to find somewhere appropriate and affordable in the town.

In the last five years, 18 individuals have lived in HopeHomes with people staying on average for a year and a half before moving on.

Our first HopeHome, which accommodates four people, is owned by a local social investor and the second, which has five residents, was purchased following a substantial legacy from a Watford couple, Peter and Audrey Barnes. Both homes were furnished following an appeal to members of the public who then purchased items from our house-warming wish lists.

Matthew Heasman, New Hope’s Chief Executive, said: “HopeHomes has been such an exciting initiative. New Hope is so grateful to be able to play a small part in providing affordable homes to those with previous experience of homelessness. I know from first-hand experience what a difference our first two HopeHomes have made to the lives of nearly twenty individuals.

“What I most love about HopeHomes though is that in addition to providing good quality accommodation at a reasonable rate, residents are able to access support from our Tenancy Sustainment Team to help them to continue to improve their lives and  move towards full independence. As funds allow we would love to see our modest portfolio of HopeHomes grow in response to a very real need for this sort of accommodation.”

One of the residents said: “I am very happy and I like the level of support I receive. I feel safe and I like my weekly catch-up. It’s good to know if I have an issue New Hope staff are at the end of the phone. It is so reassuring.”