Cornwall Community Foundation Awarded £300,000 for Homelessness Fund

£300,000 Boost to Tackle Rough Sleeping in Cornwall

Cornwall Community Foundation has been awarded £300,000 from Cornwall Council to launch a new Single Homeless and Rough Sleeping Fund.

The funding will enable the Foundation to continue supporting front-line organisations working with people experiencing homelessness across Cornwall.

The new fund will focus on four key priorities:

• Reducing and preventing rough sleeping

• Increasing prevention services

• Providing targeted support for people moving on from asylum accommodation

• Strengthening multi-agency work to improve safety and public confidence in town centres where rough sleeping and street activity overlap

Applications to the Single Homeless and Rough Sleeping Fund open on 18th February. Further details are available on the Cornwall Community Foundation website.

Housing Pressures Highlighted in Latest Research

The funding comes at what Cornwall Community Foundation describes as a critical time for the county. Its Vital Signs 2025 research outlines the scale of Cornwall’s housing challenges.

According to the report, households in temporary accommodation have risen by 224% since 2019. The number of households on the housing register has also reached record levels.

Affordability pressures remain significant. The average home in Cornwall now costs 8.8 times average earnings, compared with 7.5 across England and Wales. Private rents are widely viewed as unaffordable.

Community sentiment reflects those concerns. The research found that:

• 91% of respondents believe there is insufficient local affordable housing

• 93% say there are not enough homes for people on low incomes

• 92% agree that private rental accommodation is unaffordable for most people

‘A Real and Immediate Difference’

Tamas Haydu, CEO of Cornwall Community Foundation, said:

“We are incredibly grateful to Cornwall Council for this generous £300,000 investment in our new Single Homeless and Rough Sleeping Fund. This funding will make a real and immediate difference – helping frontline organisations prevent rough sleeping, support people into safe accommodation, and strengthen partnership working across Cornwall. At a time when housing pressures remain high, this support will help some of our most vulnerable residents move towards stability and hope.”

About Cornwall Community Foundation

Cornwall Community Foundation is Cornwall’s largest grant-maker. Since it was established in 2003, it has distributed more than £23 million to local communities.

The Foundation connects donors with local causes and supports grassroots organisations working to improve lives across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.