Commonweal Housing have launched their Housing Helps new ideas competition, which will award £10k of funding to the most innovative idea for a housing solution to combat a social injustice.
This research was a look into the lives of an often overlooked group, with recommendations on how accommodation could be used to better their living situation. As a result, Commonweal commissioned the Pods, which are designed to enable otherwise empty buildings to be used as temporary spaces as a better alternative to rough sleeping.
Since being first developed the idea has also attracted interest from mainstream homelessness night shelters where organisations feel they can help towards providing privacy and security in shelters. The Pods were recently awarded Innovation of the Year at the 24Housing Awards in October.
“Our Housing Helps competition is aimed at encouraging innovation and creativity in using housing as a solution to solving social injustices. It doesn’t matter what the social injustice is, what is key is that the solution is innovative and housing focused. Our last competition received a lot of interest with entries from across the country and some incredibly interesting proposals so we’re looking forward to seeing what Housing Helps will deliver.”
Ashley Horsey, Chief Executive at Commonweal Housing
The Housing Helps competition is open to any charity, research body or organisation with an interest in a social injustice that they believe to have been under researched or where there is something new to be examined about a particular injustice or solution.
You can find out more and apply here.