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Our Street Outreach teams are at the heart of P3, out every day, rain or shine. From early mornings to late evenings, they build trust, offer practical support and provide a vital link to safety for people experiencing street-homelessness. Read on to get a glimpse of a day in the life of our Street Outreach Team in Wolverhampton.
Typically starting the day in the early hours, P3’s Street Outreach Team in Wolverhampton walk the streets of the city centre, looking for people who are rough sleeping. Finding some familiar faces and some new ones, the focus is to identify anyone in immediate danger.
People experiencing street-homelessness face daily risks that may not be as common for other types of homelessness, such as exposure to extreme weather, regular hunger, untreated illness, threat of violence, risk of exploitation and severe risk to their mental health. For our street outreach teams – which operate in Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Wolverhampton – awareness of these dangers mean they’re constantly looking out for immediate signs of harm while building trust and offering practical support. Outreach work is about spotting vulnerability early, responding to urgent needs and helping people move towards safety, stability and longer-term support.
Velena Brown, Service Manager for P3’s Wolverhampton Navigator and Street Outreach Team, explains that the best way to keep people safe is to build a consistent relationship with them, letting them know that they are in control of their own future.
She says: “I’ve got a saying that this is their journey and we’re just along for the ride – they’re in the driving seat and we’re just passengers. What we do differently is give people that time to think about what their options are, giving them all the information and the knowledge so that they can make an informed decision for themselves. We support them with accessing services, [both externally] and internally with other services across P3.”
For a lot of people, support is taken one step at a time. As Jim Corry, a P3 Street Outreach Support Worker for 23 years, says: “When we [first find someone,] it’s usually first thing in the morning, so we give them coffee and [try to] build that relationship.”
He adds: “It’s all about trust and consistency… If you were sitting there – which sadly I have – and somebody comes up to you, you’re not just going to give your life story away. If someone comes up and offers you a coffee and takes it a step at a time, it builds that trust – something that this field of work is all about. Nine times out of 10 you might get the result you want, which is to help that person move on. And if you don’t, eventually when they’re ready, [they come to you]. It’s not an overnight thing.”
Jim explains that sometimes people don’t know what they’re looking for, which makes it more challenging for them to access support. “It’s not just about the four walls; it’s about the whole package. It’s about lifestyle, it’s about friends, it’s about the way they view life”, Jim says.
The role of the P3’s street outreach teams is to present options and support people on their journey towards the future they want. Velena explains that: “Sometimes you come across hurdles and barriers, but it’s about how we can overcome them. That’s what’s good about P3: We’re very creative, [so] there isn’t really anything we can’t look at. Even if it’s something we can’t [help them with], we’ll be signposting them to the relevant agencies that can.”
Velena adds that at P3, we’re one of the few services in Wolverhampton that provide tailored support for people facing complex barriers, including those with offending histories. We even support individuals involved in arson, focusing on the circumstances behind their actions and how we can help while managing risk so that the people we support can work through what they need to at their own pace.
This philosophy plays strongly into P3’s trauma-informed approach across its support services. Velena says, “What’s good about P3 is that we have the PIE [psychologically informed environment] and TIC [trauma-informed care] training that gives us understanding of the people we support and the challenges they face.”
Velena explains that the PIE and TIC approaches focus on understanding why the people we work alongside face challenges, rather than defining them by labels, categories or the challenges themselves. Part of building a support plan for someone involves understanding how past trauma can trigger certain behaviours and how we can reset those behaviours.
Another challenge that our street outreach teams regularly face is the lack of trust that often comes with people who are experiencing homelessness. To overcome this, Velena says the whole sector must rethink the way we build trust with people needing support.
“A lot of [the people we work alongside] have been on this journey for a [long] time and there may be hurdles they’ve faced that are sometimes [as a result of] the services they’ve approached for support… hat then builds up a lack of trust in [the sector as a whole].”
“The work our outreach team do is [founded on] rebuilding that trust and that rapport. That’s why I say ‘time is everything’: time for them to process the information we give them and time to see what’s best for themselves, because sometimes they’re not ready to take that step. We’re here to let them know that we’ll be here when they are ready.”
As we speak to more colleagues across Wolverhampton, the team talk to us about common issues they face across their daily work. Jim, a long-standing street outreach worked for P3, says, “Getting to know people, walking the streets – I absolutely love it. The only thing I hate is the rain.”
He tells us that most people he supports can cope with the cold, but it’s difficult to remain positive when you’re soaked through from the rain. Walking the streets and through all weathers, this is something Jim sees firsthand every day and is keen for us to understand.
Jim takes us to the Wolverhampton bus station, followed by the train station: Two places he says are local ‘hotspots’ for homelessness. Jim says, “It’s quite a popular place because you’ve got a lot of people going to the station who might be able to help.” Jim explains that busier spots help people experiencing homelessness regain a sense of visibility within the local community.
We stop by a place bordered up with cardboard, which was home to someone who was helped off the streets that morning. The gentleman had a dog, and Jim says that pet-ownership can complicate finding someone safe and secure temporary housing. Jim explains, “We do have dog-friendly places within P3, [but they’re limited, so] the team are just waiting for a current resident to move onto long-term housing, and we can move the person from this morning in. Sometimes we work with local shelters to temporarily hold animals while we find somewhere suitable for the owners. A lot of people don’t want to give [up their pets], you see – a Catch-22 situation… The animals play such a big part in their lives; sometimes they’re the only friends they’ve got.”
We turn our conversation to stereotypes, particularly those surrounding homelessness and addiction. Jim believes that, as support workers, it’s vital to remain impartial: It’s not about telling people what they should do but about supporting them to make healthier choices that are right for them.
He also points out that for people on the streets, giving up addiction is incredibly difficult. He explains that guilt can often play a big part, especially when friends are struggling to get clean: “Once you start that process yourself, you can’t help but think about the people who you’ve met throughout that journey. Those people become your family, something I’ve noticed a lot over the years.”
He adds that for people that do still have family connections, they often isolate themselves as they don’t want to put their family at risk through exposure : “Even those people who do have family, say they have addiction or other problems, they can’t be around them for fear of dealers or crime or something else altogether. It’s hard for everyone involved, it’s another Catch-22 situation.”
Jim changes his focus to the need for local and collaborative support. Often when P3 is supporting someone, they’re doing so alongside other agencies and organisations. This multi-agency approach doesn’t just support the person with their immediate housing needs, but prepares them for a stable future and, in some cases, a return to family life.
We ask Jim why he often says there’s a Catch-22 at play. He explains that much like the novel the phrase comes from, many of the dilemmas faced by people experiencing homelessness are inescapable, with one problem inevitably creating another.
Jim says that homelessness can often lead to substance misuse due to regular exposure to people using substances or to escape the reality of rough sleeping. He adds, “What you’ve got to realise is that if you’re unfortunate enough to be on the streets, you can’t do it without blanking out from it, whether that’s drugs or alcohol… Even if it’s not an addiction so to speak, you may drink a bit more than usual to block out where you are. It’s escapism – as is crack, mamba and heroin.”
Jim is a strong advocate for rethinking the way we respond to homelessness and substance misuse. He encourages people to move beyond assumptions and instead see the individual as separate to their circumstances. For Jim, meaningful change starts with understanding, recognising the complex and often interconnected challenges people face.
As the team finish their outreach shift for the morning, support doesn’t end there. The doors of the Wolverhampton Navigator are open 9am – 5pm, Monday – Friday, where people can pop-in for advice.
As Velena says: “Anybody that’s looking for support, please come to our service at 43 School Street and just have a chat, because sometimes that’s all you need. Even if it’s us signposting you to a relevant service or overcoming those stigmas around 24-hour services.”
