Mansfield District Council has completed a £1.5m refurbishment of its temporary accommodation complex, which provides 34 homes for people facing homelessness.
The entire building and every self-contained flat has been upgraded. Work included new kitchens and bathrooms in each property, redecoration, and improvements to communal areas.
What has been improved
New children's play equipment has been installed both indoors and outdoors. Up to 50 children live at the complex at any one time, and residents specifically requested a larger, fully secure play area.
A new wellbeing garden has been created for single adults. Inside the complex, a communal day room has been upgraded with a new kitchen and small indoor play area. The council now uses this space to run 'cook and eat' sessions where residents and their families can participate in group cooking sessions with support from the council's health and wellbeing team.
Communal kitchens and living areas have been modernised with new furniture throughout.
Funding and broader initiative
The refurbishment was funded from Mansfield District Council's Housing Revenue Account capital works budget.
The project follows the council's selection for a national pilot scheme to improve temporary accommodation services. Mansfield District Council is leading the pilot on behalf of seven housing authorities across Nottinghamshire and has received £128,000 in funding from the Justlife Foundation, a national charity working to improve long-term solutions to homelessness.
The Justlife Foundation selected Mansfield's bid from 58 applicants. The pilot will test new approaches to supporting families in temporary accommodation settings.
Council response
Cllr Ann Callaghan, Portfolio Holder for Housing, said: "When people are facing homelessness, it is a distressing time in their lives, and coming to temporary accommodation can be, for many, a scary situation. Now it is a warm, bright and welcoming place. The very fact that some residents and their families don't want to leave demonstrates how much has been achieved here and how hard the team work to make sure everyone is as comfortable as possible."