Neville working with council to tackle homelessness
MANCHESTER Council and social housing provider Riverside Care and Support have teamed up with former footballer turned property investor Gary Neville to help the homeless people living in the former Stock building.
Neville and his partners in Relentless Investments plan to turn the vacant former Manchester stock exchange building on Norfolk Street in the city centre into a boutique hotel.
Before building work starts in the new year, Neville has agreed to let dozens of homeless people stay there. The agreement with the council and Riverside will give support to those staying there.
This includes helping them access a range of services including mental health, drug and alcohol support. Riverside staff will visit the building on a regular basis and will also provide support including helping the residents find access to temporary accommodation, assistance with accessing benefits and help to find more settled accommodation.
Cllr Paul Andrews, Manchester City Council’s executive member for adult health and well-being, said: “Working in partnership with Riverside and Gary Neville, we’ve moved to ensure that the homeless people temporarily living in this building have access to the support, guidance and advice which help them address the underlying reasons why they have been living on the street and help them move their lives forward.
“While shelter and a roof over their heads is obviously a good start, what we’re working together to achieve is about helping and supporting people to get off the streets.
“Following Gary Neville’s kind gesture of allowing people to stay in his building, we have been working to develop a partnership and make sure we can get the right people inside who can offer the right support and guidance. I am pleased to say that this is a relationship Gary Neville is keen to develop to ensure a lasting legacy for the city from the work which is going on here.”
A spokesperson for Gary Neville said: “There has been a great deal of media coverage over the last two weeks and it goes to highlight the real life problem that we have with people living on the streets of our city.
“Nobody should be sleeping on the street. We will work with the council and Riverside offering support and services with the ultimate goal of providing a roof over the heads of the people in the Stock Exchange.”
