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Housing association forced to shut homelessness hostel needing refurbishment
A housing association on the south coast has had to close down a homelessness hostel and move residents out of the area after being unable to find funding for necessary refurbishment works.
Bournemouth Churches Housing Association (BCHA), which owns and manages around 1,500 homes, has now moved people previously living in Melcombe House in Weymouth to other areas around Dorset.
The hostel will officially close on 31 August.
A stock condition survey carried out by BCHA earlier this year concluded that the building needed refurbishment, but the landlord was unable to come up with a means of paying for the work.
“Having explored a number of alternative avenues of funding without success, we took a considered decision that we were unable to continue to provide the necessary subsidy to maintain the high level of service to provide the best outcomes for the residents,” a spokesperson for BCHA said.
“The continuation of Melcombe House in its current condition was not a value for money proposition.
“The closure of the building therefore reflects our commitment to providing high standards of accommodation combined with the appropriate levels of support based on customers’ needs.”
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BCHA worked with Dorset Council to find new accommodation for Melcombe House residents – who have additional support needs – over a five-week period.
They are now living in other BCHA or council-owned housing stock, and the housing association said its team worked hard to meet individuals’ specific needs.
Brian Swann, interim director of housing and customer experience at BCHA, said: “The decision to close Melcombe House was particularly difficult, as this scheme has provided stability and support services for some of our most at-risk customers over many years, but the welfare of our customers has always been our top priority.
“However, we are pleased to say that, having worked closely with a number of community partners, we have been able to rehouse all the residents.
“In addition, all the staff working at the project have been redeployed to other parts of BCHA operations.”
BCHA is currently working with the local authority to put together plans for the redevelopment of Melcombe House.
Graham Carr-Jones, portfolio holder for housing and community safety at Dorset Council, said: “The safety of our residents is first and foremost everyone’s priority.
“When a decision is taken to close a building for refurbishment, it’s important that all partners work together to make sure residents can move to alternative accommodation quickly and smoothly.
“Wherever possible, we try to rehouse residents in a community where they have local connections, but this isn’t always possible, so we work with them to find other suitable accommodation.”
