Commissioned by Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council and the National Probation Service, the ROOTs programme works with high risk/persistent offenders who are at risk of being homeless. The basis of this service is to provide suitable accommodation and successful tenancy management.
Access to stable accommodation is fundamental to successfully manage high-risk offenders such as those subject to MAPPA (Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements) and PPO (Prolific and Priority Offender) arrangements.
ROOTS supports participants to access appropriate housing and manage their tenancy. Including supporting with:
• Complying with their prison licence
• Post sentence supervision
• Community orders or SHPO
• Employment, training and education
• Mental health and substance misuse
By providing stable accommodation and support, ROOTS helps the people it works with to:
• Reduce reoffending rates
• Improve sustained tenancy rates
• Improve health and wellbeing
• Increase financial stability
• Stay safe
• Enjoy and achieve
Cost: benefit ratio of 1:5. For every £1 spent on the service, Tameside has saved £5 in public funds.
People in Tameside whose offending is associated with long-term, severe, complex circumstances and behaviours in their lives. Tameside connection must be high-risk and MAPPA eligible (prison sentence more significant than 12 months for index offence) or registered as a PPO (Priority Prolific Offender)
Referrals are only accepted from probation (NPS), spotlight police and SOMU due to the strict eligibility criteria.
For more information about Roots, don’t hesitate to get in touch with David Andrew or Joanne Simpson
Mr A was referred to Roots in September 2019. He had spent just over nine years in custody for robbery and had a long history of offending.
Once Roots had established rapport after initial difficulties engaging with the service, he started to show high motivation levels. He became open and honest and acknowledged his previous behaviours, and had a clear idea of the positive path he wanted to follow.
Roots worked on a robust support programme, agreeing on short and medium-term goals, underpinned by working collaboratively with the ‘Spotlight’ Team (police and probation) to ensure Roots supported him effectively. Roots also secured him independent accommodation in October 2019 and worked closely with him to improve his family relationships helping him build a strong relationship with his parents. He continues to engage with all agencies and attends Change Grow Live (CGL) drug and alcohol services weekly to help him remain abstinent.
He has also gained supervised access to his children, grasped his opportunity for support and permanent accommodation with both hands, and embraced change. He remains offence-free and looks towards a bright future, including securing employment. He has continued to engage positively during COVID-19.
