Prince William has marked the second anniversary of his Homewards initiative to end homelessness, announcing that the programme has shifted from planning to delivery mode with significant achievements already realised.
The initiative has successfully housed its first residents and scaled innovative solutions through the Homewards Fund across six flagship locations throughout the UK.
New partnerships with major corporations, including Lloyds Banking Group and Hays, have been established to create housing and employment opportunities.
They aim to make tangible progress in the ambitious programme's mission to make homelessness "rare, brief and unrepeated".
Prince William has marked the anniversary of his homeless initiative, Homeward.
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In a message marking the anniversary, Prince William expressed his gratitude for the collective efforts of hundreds of organisations across the public, private and voluntary sectors that have formed coalitions in each location.
"Many of you have been on the front line of tackling homelessness for decades; for some, Homewards represents the first time you have engaged on this issue," he said.
The Prince emphasised the unique power of the initiative, stating: "Your experiences are what makes Homewards unique and powerful.
"We have the ability to harness our collective capabilities, expertise, and resources towards this common cause."
The Prince of Wales celebrated the work that had been done so far under the Homeward umbrella, even if there was still work to do.
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Prince William highlighted the programme's concrete achievements, noting: "After a year of convening, our second year has seen Homewards shift into delivery mode.
"We have moved our first residents into homes, scaled innovative solutions through the Homewards Fund, launched locally led initiatives to tackle homelessness and forged Activator partnerships to deliver homes and employment opportunities with Lloyds Banking Group and Hays."
He acknowledged that whilst change would come immediately, progress was already evident.
"I know this is a mammoth challenge and change won't come overnight, but over the past year we've started to shift the dial and there are now people who are no longer experiencing homelessness thanks to your tremendous efforts," William said.
Homeward's goal is to make homelessness "rare, brief and unrepeated".
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Looking ahead to year three, Prince William expressed optimism about the programme's future whilst acknowledging the complexity of the challenge.
"Tackling homelessness is not just about building homes. Creating long-term change is complex and unpredictable, but I am confident we can lead and inspire understanding, empathy and optimism that homelessness can be ended," he stated.
The Prince emphasised that success for Homewards means "demonstrating that change is possible; that homelessness is not the insurmountable challenge it is too often perceived to be."
He concluded: "As we move into year three, I am optimistic we can succeed in our collective endeavour."
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William launched the initiative in June 2023.
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The Homewards initiative was first launched in June 2023 by Prince William and The Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales.
It set out a 5-year programme split across 6 locally led flagship organisations around the UK.
The programme has been launched in Aberdeen, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Lambeth, Newport, Northern Ireland and Sheffield.
Each location was given up to half a million pounds to help bring partner organisations, including charities and big businesses, to help end homelessness.
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