Following a resident request for information, here is how to get help for rough sleepers.
Oxford City Council commissions St Mungo’s Broadway to deliver an assertive outreach and reconnection service to those rough sleeping in the city of Oxford. This service is called Oxford Street Population Outreach Team (Oxford SPOT) and the team works 7 days per week, helping people rough sleeping in the city to access appropriate accommodation and support.
Please contact Oxford SPOT directly, rather than through the Council or your councillors, as this is the fastest way for a rough sleeper to get in touch with organisations that can help.
Oxford SPOT can be contacted via phone on 01865 304 611 or via e-mail at
outreach.oxford@mungosbroadway.org.uk
Oxford SPOT will try to locate the person in order to offer assistance to access suitable accommodation and support. The team will also be able to advise of other services in the city that can offer help and assistance such as food and clothes, or sign-post to local organisations in the city that can help with employment, training and employment.
For more information about rough sleeping and the work that is done to tackle this in the city, please see the Frequently Asked Questions document here
Severe Weather Emergency Protocol
Oxford City Council has a protocol in place with local homelessness agencies to ensure that there is provision of extra bed spaces for rough sleepers during the cold winter months. The Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP) sets out a joint effort between Oxford City Council and homelessness agencies in Oxford city to take all possible steps to avoid deaths on the streets due to people sleeping rough during severe winter weather conditions.
SWEP is usually triggered when the night time temperature is forecast by the Met Office to drop to zero or below for three consecutive nights. The protocol is implemented on the first night of such a forecast.
In order to access this emergency provision, a person should satisfy the below criteria:
- Be at risk if they continue to sleep rough during the course of the severe weather
- Have nowhere to sleep indoors during the course of the severe weather
- Agree to the assistance offered
The provision offered is very basic, generally consisting of a roll mat and a sleeping bag, but does mean that someone who might otherwise sleep rough on the streets of Oxford, is offered space indoors and out of the cold.
O’Hanlon House, one of the homeless hostels in the city, co-ordinates the provision and will allocate spaces in the other homeless hostels if O’Hanlon House reach its capacity.
When provision is open, rough sleepers and support agencies acting on their behalf should contact O’Hanlon House directly, before 4pm, on 01865 304 600 to make arrangements for access.