Plymouth Charities Secure £1.56m Investment to Transform Homelessness Prevention
Plymouth charities The Zone and Path have secured a combined £1.56m in new Government funding to transform homelessness prevention and support across the city, helping more people get the right support before they reach crisis point.
Plymouth charities Path and The Zone have secured £774,196 and £789,562 respectively through the programme, which is managed by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).
Path and The Zone each made successful bids for funding, which were endorsed by Plymouth City Council. The investment will enable both organisations to expand community-based homelessness prevention and support in Plymouth, helping people get the right support earlier and reducing the likelihood of individuals and families reaching crisis point.
The Government announced allocations earlier this week from the Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund for 2026–2029, with £41 million in revenue funding and £6 million in capital funding allocated to preferred bidders across England.
The investment will deliver two major developments in homelessness prevention across Plymouth. Path will establish Path Central, a new city-centre homelessness prevention and support hub, alongside a new Homelessness Prevention Service offering earlier, direct access to practical housing support. The Zone will transform its Union Street building into a more accessible and psychologically informed space, including a dedicated day centre for young people, while expanding prevention work to help young people and families address housing difficulties before they reach crisis point.
The Zone - Transforming Support for Young People
For more than 35 years, The Zone has supported young people aged 13 to 25 across Plymouth, including those experiencing homelessness or at risk of losing their housing.
For young people, homelessness is not always visible. It can mean sofa surfing, moving between temporary arrangements or staying somewhere unsafe or unsuitable, often alongside pressures including poor mental health, family breakdown and financial difficulties.
Through the Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund, The Zone has secured £789,562 to strengthen homelessness prevention and help more young people move towards safe, stable futures.
£200,000 of capital funding will transform The Zone’s Union Street building into a more accessible, welcoming and psychologically informed environment. At its heart will be a dedicated day centre for young people, providing a safe and supportive place to access help and connect with the services they need.
The redevelopment will also create space for partner organisations to work alongside The Zone through a new “Team Around Me” approach, bringing together support including housing, health, mental health, family support, education and employment around the individual young person.
A further £589,562 in revenue funding will support a new homelessness prevention programme, working with young people and families before crisis point. This will include family support and mediation where it is safe and appropriate, alongside help with housing options and practical skills such as budgeting, tenancy management and independent living.
Young people will help co-design the transformed building and services, ensuring they are accessible, welcoming and shaped around their needs.
Together, the investment will enable The Zone to reach young people earlier, provide more joined-up support and create stronger pathways into safe, sustainable housing and greater independence.
Anna Moss, CEO of The Zone, said:
“Every young person deserves a safe place to turn, someone who believes in them, and the opportunity to build a positive future. This investment is about reaching young people earlier, preventing homelessness before crisis takes hold, and creating a community where no young person has to face these challenges alone. By transforming our space and strengthening the early support available, together we can make Plymouth a city where no young person has to experience rough sleeping. We will also create new paid and volunteer opportunities for people who want to be part of this work and help make that change happen.”
Path - Introducing Path Central and a new Homelessness Prevention Service
Since 1995, Path has been tackling homelessness in Plymouth, supporting 2,253 people experiencing homelessness or at risk of losing their homes last year alone.
Through the Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund, Path has secured £200,000 in capital funding to move to Path Central, a new homelessness prevention and support hub at Elspeth Sitters House on Hoegate Street.
Designed around dignity, accessibility, safety and trauma-informed practice, Path Central will provide a welcoming and accessible place where people can get help earlier, with private consultation rooms, specialist facilities and space for partner organisations to work alongside Path.
A further £574,196 in revenue funding will establish a new Homelessness Prevention Service, expanding Path’s staff and volunteer capacity and enabling people worried about their housing to approach the charity directly for support before their situation reaches crisis point.
Support will be available through drop-in sessions, telephone, online and face-to-face appointments and community outreach, covering issues including tenancy sustainment, landlord mediation, housing options, access to health services and alternative accommodation.
The full service is due to launch from Path Central in early 2027 and is expected to prevent homelessness for thousands of local people over the lifetime of the project, while reducing pressure on emergency and crisis services.
Victoria Allen, CEO of Path, said:
“Securing this funding is a hugely important moment for Path and for Plymouth. We are seeing growing numbers of people coming to us with increasingly complex housing situations, and we know that the earlier we can help, the greater the chance we have of preventing homelessness altogether.
This investment will allow us to fundamentally change how people access our support. Through Path Central and our new Homelessness Prevention Service, people will no longer have to wait until they reach crisis point. They will be able to come directly to us when they first become worried about their housing and get practical, specialist help.
The scale of investment secured for Plymouth reflects both the scale of the challenge facing our city and the strength of the organisations working together to address it. This investment gives us a real opportunity to make lasting change and prevent thousands of people from experiencing homelessness.”
Councillor Matt Smith, Cabinet Member for Housing, City Centre Regeneration and Events, said:
"I'm so very pleased that these two trusted Plymouth charities have been able to benefit from this crucial funding.
Tackling homelessness is about far more than simply providing shelter and by having partners like Path and The Zone, we are able to offer services far beyond the reach of the Council and make a real, positive difference to so many people's lives."
Full details of the Government’s Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund 2026–2029 allocations are available on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ending-homelessness-in-communities-fund-2026-to-2029-funding-allocations