Can service providers achieve more by working together?
The one certainty about Supported Housing?
It’s needed work. But it’s challenging work.
From a shortage of quality staffing to a lack of funding—the sector has a reputation for its struggles and demands.
But having that, and because of that, the sector also affords brilliant opportunities for collaborations & partnerships.
With other service providers.
With local authorities.
And with other organisations & businesses.
In this post, we’ll explore each of the main ways a service provider can do it together with other entities.
So they can provide a whole new level of care for their important residents—and so that big problems like homelessness is tackled in unity.
Doing it together with other service providers
After attending the Supported Housing Conference in 2022, one of the main takeaways for Look Ahead’s CEO, Chris Hampson, was that partnerships are key.
He made note that service providers should focus on their strengths—and through collaborating with other providers they can add more value.
Partnering with other service providers means they can share resources—whether it’s their strategic networks or even staff.
They can exchange knowledge—especially in critical, uncertain times like we saw in the pandemic.
And they can share expertise—in everything from how to manage residents to how to bring them the best outcomes.
Building those relationships with local authorities
Another incredible partnership for service providers with their own local authorities.
As the governing entities of the local area, collaborating with them can bring crucial visibility & recognition—all of which can be hugely beneficial for getting more funding.
And more than that: these partnerships can bring a higher level of support.
A great example is Homeless Link, a strategic body created just to help these strategic partnerships form.
Through them, they have helped service providers build new relationships with their local authorities & strengthen collaboration—all ultimately leading to better support to the vulnerable local residents.
Joining hands with businesses & organisations
Apart from fellow service providers and local authorities—engaging with businesses and organisations can be a powerful union for service providers.
On the expertise side: they can provide strategic advice from an entrepreneur’s eyes. They can offer insight into developing processing, building in efficiency, and managing resources effectively.
On the resources side: they can provide future jobs for residents, experiences to build their confidence, and even that crucial sense of community.
An excellent example of such a successful partnership was the “Everyone In” support during lockdown.
Because of cross-departmental collaborations—in which AGS Support played a big part as we managed 6 COVID hotels for Greater London Authority—the UK saw the greatest reduction in homelessness in over a decade.
A service provider in England? We’re excited to partner with you
Whether you’re a homelessness charity, a rural housing association or a city-central one—if you’re in England, we’d love to partner with you.
While we’ve been specialist support staffing providers for over 25 years, it’s not just high-quality staffing resources that we provide.
We created our team & designed our services to offer:
(1) The best, supported housing recruitment expertise
(2) Full, senior-level staff management
(3) Operations & logistics support
You have your strengths.
The critical work that only you can do.
The expertise of helping your residents achieve the best outcomes for their lives.
And we’d love to bring the competent support with our fully-managed staffing solutions.
To find out more about our services, visit: https://agssupport.co.uk/services/