Labour MP Gareth Snell visited Emmaus North Staffs last week (August 28).
Gareth who was elected as MP for Stoke-on-Trent Central in the recent General Election, joined Emmaus North Staffs Chief Executive Officer John Webbe to discuss future plans for the charity.
Commenting on his visit, Gareth said: “We’re really lucky to have Emmaus in Stoke-on-Trent. Everyday, the whole team work really hard to help people across Stoke-on-Trent turn a house into a home. Their next exciting step means they will be able to help event more people in communities right across North Staffordshire. And their work is so important because too many people struggle to make ends meet. Too many families are stuck in a cycle of poverty and that little bit of extra help from Emmaus goes a long way.’
Staff at Emmaus North Staffs gave Gareth Snell MP a tour of their impressive new 68,000-square-foot unit, where they shared their exciting plans for the future. The charity is set to open a new shop on Monday, 7th October, marking a significant step forward in their efforts to support the local community.
Chief Executive of Emmaus North Staffs, John Webbe said: “It was a pleasure to welcome Gareth Snell MP to Emmaus North Staffs. His visit highlights the crucial work we do in supporting those facing poverty in our community. We are eager to expand our impact across North Staffordshire and enjoyed showing Gareth our plans regarding a bigger and better unit. Our work aligns with the broader goals outlined in the Emmaus UK manifesto, which calls for significant government action to address the root causes of homelessness and improve support systems nationwide.”
The six key steps Emmaus UK would like the new government to take are:
1) Act on supported housing: take forward and properly consult on the Supported Housing Act, which will introduce national standards across the country.
2) Create more affordable homes: build 90,000 social rent homes per year, keep Local Housing Allowance unfrozen to improve the affordability of the private rented sector, and finally abolish Section 21 evictions.
3) Take a cross-government approach: launch a cross-department task force on ending homelessness led by the Cabinet Office, which brings together policy on housing, work, social care, justice and more to produce a rounded strategy, with commitments for every department.
4) Invest for the long term: review all current spending on homelessness, and replace temporary and short-term funding with a long-term, ringfenced homelessness fund.
5) On the ground consultation: put community insights at the heart of national policy solutions, so that people with lived experience of homelessness are listened to, including in the implementation of the Supported Housing Act, and through the cross-government task force Emmaus is backing.
6) No-one criminalised for being homeless: ensure the punitive measures on homelessness in the Criminal Justice Bill do not return to Parliament, and that the outdated Vagrancy Act is scrapped.
The manifesto signals a fresh approach to policy and campaigning by the charity, which is now proactively engaging with government officials to take action on homelessness and ensure ministers addresses the issue’s root causes.