A nine-month research project at the University’s School for Policy Studies will look at how best to improve the way in which the housing support needs of vulnerable women in Bristol are met as part of the Supporting People (SP) programme. Nationally, the SP programme provides housing-related support services to over 1.2 million vulnerable people throughout the UK. The programme supports approximately 9,000 people at a local level in Bristol.

The £27,000 grant has been awarded to Dr Emma Williamson, Ailsa Cameron, Dr Lorna Henry and Dr Hilary Abrahams by Novas Scarman (NSG), which is a social enterprise with charitable status working locally throughout England and Wales to support disadvantaged individuals and communities.

The project aims to improve the strategic capacity of the Bristol (SP) programme in meeting the gender-specific housing support needs of vulnerable women. The research will benefit both current and future clients as well as the providers of SP services for women, commissioners and other stakeholders. Central to the research process is listening to the voices of women service users, practitioners, and key stakeholders and the research will involve telephone interviews with all these groups as well as surveys and interviews with over 40 service users.

Due to the often complex needs of service users it can be difficult to ascertain how access to a range of services is utilised by services users and why.  Developing a greater understanding of this particularly vulnerable group of clients will contribute to future service developments.

The project will run until the end of July this year.