BRIGHTON and Hove will benefit from £1.25 million in new funding to tackle its homelessness crisis, it has been announced.

The city council has been revealed as one of the biggest winners from £40 million of new funding announced by Prime Minister Theresa May earlier this year.

The additional funding cannot come soon enough for the city which saw its official count of street sleepers double in 12 months in figures released just days ago.

Brighton and Hove City Council had bid for £2 million and the council’s homelessness lead Clare Moonan said that the majority of their bids had been successful.

The city council will use the money to fund a dual diagnosis worker to support rough sleepers with both substance misuse and mental health needs and a navigator worker to help those new to the streets or experiencing hidden forms of homelessness to get the emergency accommodation and support they need.

Eleven other Sussex councils will also share a rough sleeping grant in a project led by Eastbourne Borough Council.

The funding highlights the city’s position at the forefront of tackling rising homelessness.

Just last month charity Shelter revealed that one in 69 in the city were effectively homeless with more than 4,000 people sleeping rough or in emergency or temporary accommodation.

Councillor Clare Moonan, lead member for homelessness, said: “We’ve worked hard to secure this extra funding to increase our homelessness work and it’s a reflection of the good reputation we have for innovative approaches in this area that we were able to draw the money to the city.”

Prime Minister Theresa May said: “In the run up to Christmas, images of soup kitchens and hostels remind us of the vital lifeline provided by charities and local services to those facing a night on the streets.”

Communities Secretary Sajid Javid said: “We’re making this £50 million funding available across the country this Christmas for ambitious programmes to prevent homelessness in the first place, so that by next year many more people will have been helped to get their lives back on track.”

PRIME Minister Theresa May and communities secretary Sajid Javid announced the funding boost for the £20 million “homeless prevention trailblazer”, a new homelessness prevention scheme, across the country earlier this year.

Brighton and Hove City Council will receive a sizeable share to pilot new initiatives to tackle homelessness in the area.

Local authorities were also able to bid for cash from a £10 million grant fund for early intervention to help rough sleepers before their problems become entrenched.

A further £10 million in Social Impact Bond funding will provide personalised support to address the complex needs of long-term rough sleepers and get them into accommodation.

Brighton and Hove received more than £350,000 to provide targeted support for those at imminent risk of sleeping rough or those new to the streets.

It comes as the number of people sleeping rough in Brighton and Hove has nearly doubled in the last year.

In the most recent count, a total of 144 people were on the streets in one night as opposed to 78 last year.

It also comes after it emerged earlier this month that the city has the worst homeless toll outside London, affecting one in 69 people.

The latest statistics, collected on Tuesday, November 8, are used as an estimate to provide an overall picture to make sure the right support services are in place.

Most of the people counted were men, with just 18 women found sleeping rough. The figures recorded on November 3 last year showed 71 were men and seven were women. There were 132 rough sleepers counted in March 2014.

CASH COMES AS CITY ROUGH SLEEPER FIGURE HITS NEW HIGH

Prime Minister Theresa May and Communities Secretary Sajid Javid announced a funding boost for the £20 million “homeless prevention trailblazer”, a new homelessness prevention scheme, across the country earlier this year.

Brighton and Hove City Council will receive a sizeable share to pilot new initiatives to tackle homelessness in the area.

Local authorities were also able to bid for cash from a £10 million grant fund for early intervention to help rough sleepers before their problems become entrenched.

A further £10 million in Social Impact Bond funding will provide personalised support to address the complex needs of long-term rough sleepers and get them into accommodation.

Brighton and Hove received more than £350,000 to provide targeted support for those at imminent risk of sleeping rough or those new to the streets. It comes as the people sleeping rough in Brighton and Hove nearly doubled in the last year.

In the most recent count, a total of 144 people were on the streets in one night as opposed to 78 last year.

It also comes after it emerged earlier this month that the city has the worst homeless toll outside London, affecting one in 69 people.

The latest statistics, collected on Tuesday, November 8, are used as an estimate to provide an overall picture to make sure the right support services are in place.

Most of the people counted were men, with 18 women found sleeping rough. The figures recorded on November 3 last year showed 71 were men and seven were women. There were 132 rough sleepers counted in March 2014.