Intervention: Dundee
Fund: Social and Sustainable Housing
Date of Investment: November 2020
Impact Area: Housing and local facilities
Beneficiary Group: People with addiction issues, Ex-Offenders
Positive Steps Partnership was established in 1989 as a Dundee based charity focused on the HIV crisis in a city with many intravenous drug users. Drawing on their experience of supporting vulnerable young drug users, Positive Steps developed its services to focus on ex-offenders (often addicts) being released from Dundee, Perth, Grampian and other prisons. On release from prison, Positive Steps provides a combination of housing and support to enable this group to reestablish their lives.
The loan enables Positive Steps to purchase 30 properties, dispersed across the city
Transition from prison release to independent living
Vulnerable adults, including ex-offenders and those suffering drug addiction
Housing and support for 30 clients at any one time
By reducing reliance on private rentals, Positive Steps believes they can better support their clients to achieve successful transition to independent living
Although Positive Steps has no previous property ownership experience, they have a strong track record of supporting vulnerable individuals in rented housing
We are really excited about the investment from SASH, as it gives us the opportunity that we needed to expand and broaden our services to meet social demand and to acquire sustainable assets, without reducing our available resources.
Over the past 25 years, we have seen a growing demand for supported accommodation – both short and long term in Dundee. We plan to quickly grow our portfolio and work with and support organisations within the criminal justice system and others to meet their accommodation demands.
Derek Sharkey, CEO
