Migrant Accommodation Pathways Support service
Our MAPS service is open to any professional working with a non-UK national rough sleeping in London or at risk of doing so.
Migrant Accommodation Pathways Support service (MAPS) supports any non-UK nationals rough sleeping or at immediate risk of it, across London. We work to identify and clarify our clients’ entitlements, accommodation options, and work with other professionals to help them out of homelessness.
Service aims
- We work with clients who are migrants to find a route into accommodation that is suitable and sustainable
- We supply advice, develop best practice and upskill others professionals to support migrants out of homelessness
- We promote system change to create more routes into accommodation for migrants including through partnership work and providing evidence for policy change
Service principles
We take a rights based approach. This means we:
- Facilitate access to legal advice and welfare rights advice
- Confront barriers to participation
- Educate ourselves in culturally competent response
- Empower clients to make decisions right for them. (This means being clear about what support we as a homeless service, and their immigration adviser too, is able to offer them)
- Use evidence to challenge the policies and practices that block our homelessness work
Ensuring we provide a route out of homelessness that reflects a person’s wishes and needs. Regardless of whether this is in the UK or elsewhere in the world.
What support is offered?
Our service is open to any professional working with a non-UK national rough sleeping in London or at risk of doing so.
From your first contact, we will triage your query and can offer you:
- Advice on supporting migrants rough sleeping to find accommodation, through either one off advice or support from one of our Assessment & Reconnection teams
- For situations which cannot be resolved through just advice, we can provide specialist casework to resolve a case of homelessness.
We have access to:
- 10 high support beds
- Immigration advice and casework
- Specialist migrant welfare rights advice
- Mental health assessments via EASL
Resources
To access the service for advice or to make a referral, please call the advice line or email us.
The advice line is open Monday to Friday between 9:30am to 5pm.
T: 0203 092 7455
E: MAPS@mungos.org
We aim to respond to all queries within 24 hours.
Joint working is key to supporting migrants into sustainable accommodation so we ask for ongoing support from the referrer.
What is reconnection?
A reconnection is a piece of work to support an individual to return safely to their home outside the UK. A reconnection should always involve the following elements.
- Immigration advice so the individual understands their rights and entitlement and can make an informed decision about if they want to reconnect. This includes understanding the implications of leaving the UK on their current status.
- A safe travel plan and sustainable accommodation in the area where they are travelling to so they do not risk returning to rough sleeping.
- Support to link in with welfare, health and wellbeing support in their area they are returning so they can continue with their recovery.
What is supported reconnection?
A supported reconnection is where a staff member supports an individuals to return by travelling with them and making sure they are safely linked in on arrival. This is essential for clients who have higher support needs.
You can see our best practice guide here.
Read Pathways into Accommodation for Non-UK Nationals here.
Appendix A – Pathways into accommodation outside the UK – Risk Assessment form
We will be launching a training programme in July 2023. Stay tuned for more details!
The Roma Rough Sleeping Service have some bespoke video training modules which can be accessed
The service is delivered by St Mungo’s and is funded by the Greater London Authority and the Department for Levelling up, Housing and Communities.