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Places for People has opened seven new one-bed small homes to support homeless people in Bristol, further expanding its support services across the region.

Social enterprise Places for People has operated supported accommodation at Stonebridge Park for over 24 years providing support and accommodation to vulnerable homeless men.

The current accommodation offers 27 living spaces with on-site support to help customers through their journey out of homelessness.

In September 2023, Places for People along with our delivery partner Agile Homes were successful in securing planning permission to build seven self-contained modular homes on the existing site at Stonebridge Park, which will allow people to live independently.

On 12 February 2025 the homes, which will overlook the Clay Bottom Valley and Nature Reserve, officially opened. This comes after Places for People worked with the Hill Group and Bristol City Council to open eight similar modular homes on Derby Street in January 2025.

There are currently over 530 single homeless people living in unsupported, private sector temporary accommodation (TA) in Bristol, who would benefit from a bigger supply of supported TA. The delivery of these seven homes helps meet the aspirations set out in Bristol City Council’s ‘Better Lives In Bristol: Supported Housing Delivery Plan’ that was approved last year and seeks to increase the supply of these types of developments.

In addition to somewhere safe and stable to live, the accommodation also provides those living there with support around a vast number of complex issues which may have contributed to them becoming homeless such as mental health, domestic abuse, financial abuse, relationship breakdown and drugs or alcohol. Support workers then help people on their journey back into permanent accommodation.

Rachel Crownshaw, Group Managing Director for Communities at Places for People, said: “These new homes will provide people with somewhere to call home, where they can live independently, with their own front door and everything they need inside. In addition to this, we have support workers available who can work with those living here and give them support, advice and guidance as they get back on their feet and hopefully into more permanent accommodation.

“We work with young people, families, and single adults right across England and Scotland providing critical housing, support and services that aim to help those who are experiencing difficulties back into a more stable and secure situation.

“People can find themselves homeless due to a large number of different reasons and this can be through no fault of their own. Our country faces a housing crisis and our own #TimetoBuild campaign last year highlighted that one in five people fear they or someone they know could be homeless within the next year. Ultimately, more homes need to be built in the long-term but right now we need projects like this to protect and support some of our most vulnerable.”

On this site, Places for People were actively supported by the council’s Housing Delivery service including a dedicated planning officer who manages all applications for specialist and supported housing schemes from Registered Provider partners.

Councillor Barry Parsons, Chair of the Homes and Housing Delivery at Bristol City Council, said: “These new homes will provide vital support and security for some of the most vulnerable people in our city. We are grateful to Places for People for working with us to help make a real tangible difference to people who are homeless and help them get back on their feet.

“Clay Bottom is a beautiful, peaceful place surrounded by trees and nature, which provides a wonderful, restorative setting where people can recover from homelessness and start to move on with their lives. Having a place of your own, with support on hand, can be a crucial step to gaining independence.”