James Morris wishes to contact practitioners with an interest in A8/A10 street population issues within London. He writes: some of you I have had contact with already as we are currently halfway through a 6 month pilot in Hammersmith and Fulham (H&F) in which we are working with the Barka foundation (a Polish social inclusion charity) and the Broadway centre. The pilot is a 6 month project that offers reconnection and further support to A8s on the streets of H&F who are vulnerable but not entitled to the support or services in H&F that Barka can offer. See previous post for details.
I am proposing a network for London so that we can share information, ideas and any good practice relating to A8 street populations. Additionally, current evaluation of the Barka pilot highlights that whilst positive results are being achieved, longer term this project should not operate in isolation as this would potentially create a magnet effect to the borough and therefore a pan-London response could be a more effective approach. A number of authorities have already taken some moves to develop similar work with Barka and it is also within the recommendations of the recently released report 'Beyond Boundaries' to work towards "...the development of a Europe wide 'Reconnections' programme. Thereby engaging with migrants and encouraging the most vulnerable to return home to resolve problems in the area where they have greatest social capital."
Therefore I am inviting you to be part of this network and for any comments or suggestions. I am also proposing a meeting for those interested in working on a pan-London response so once I have an indication of interest I will send out further details.
Contact details: [email protected]
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