“Invaluable” Roger’s Court provides temporary accommodation for rough sleepers

Last night the Housing Committee received an update on the success of Roger's Court after its first year of operation. The building was commissioned and opened in August 2021 by Bedford Borough Council providing 20 units of high quality, self-contained accommodation for people who were sleeping rough. Committee members heard that Roger's Court has been "extremely effective at enabling residents at very high risk of homelessness and rough sleeping to maintain a tenancy in good quality and safe accommodation".

Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Housing and Adult Services Portfolio Holder, Councillor Dean Crofts said "Roger's Court has offered an invaluable service to some of our most vulnerable residents by providing high quality, safe accommodation spaces as well as 24hr specialist support. Thanks to the fantastic work of officers, two residents are already being supported to move into settled accommodation."

The expectation is that the majority of residents will be accommodated in Roger's Court for up to two years. This is because it is likely that many residents will have complex support needs and so will need to access the specialist support services for around two years.

Mayor Dave Hodgson said "The Borough has made great progress in reducing the number of residents who were sleeping rough. The success that we have had working with SMART in Roger's Court has clearly been one of the key reasons behind this. I want to say thank you to SMART and all the support workers who, in conjunction with the Council, are helping people make long-term improvements in their lives to become more independent."