Homelessness: Big Issue working with SAFE

Big Issue working with SAFE

Working in partnership with the Big Issue, SAFE assists vendors to select and then open an account relevant to their needs. The Big Issue offers people who are homeless or vulnerably housed the opportunity to earn an income through selling weekly magazines. Through the Big Issue Foundation it offers support and information to help them move towards greater stability. SAFE holds drop-in sessions at the Big Issue offering one-to-one sessions with vendors as well as group workshops.

How can bank accounts be important for these clients?

Many clients seen are often trying to save towards a specific goal, for example a deposit on a place to stay. In addition, being homeless or vulnerably housed can put you at particular risk of theft. Therefore, the ability to store any money you do have securely is of great importance. In addition to this, having a bank account with a certain level of functionality allows people to access things they wouldn’t otherwise be able to – for example a job or benefits that pays directly into an account or the ability to book a ticket for travel online.

Barriers to banking for these clients

Being forced to sleep rough or in temporary accommodation, individuals can struggle to provide proof of address or have an address for banks to send correspondence to. In addition to this, due to the higher risk of experiencing theft many individuals in this situation may have had potential ID, such a passport, stolen from them.

Assisting these clients to overcome the barriers

The main assistance required is often around providing appropriate documents to prove address and identity. If someone is staying in a hostel or similar accommodation it can be arranged for a letter from their hostel manager to be used as proof of address – in this situation many clients will also have some form of correspondence from the DWP (e.g. benefits entitlement) that they’re able to use as ID. Other common forms of documents clients use include European identity cards, letters from the Home Office, Armed forces cards and CIS (Construction Industry Scheme) cards, commonly held by those who have worked in the construction industry.

Some banks will allow accounts to be opened with one strong form of ID alone (usually something with a photo) and no proof of address. In these instances an address is still required for correspondence but sometimes a care-of address can be used for this – such as a day centre.

Building a knowledge around the combinations of things different banks will accept has been really important in helping clients gather together documents for account opening. We’ve also been able to start building relationships with individual branches, making it easier for the bank staff to understand why a person may not have the ‘traditional’ documents used to open an account.

Additional links

To find out more about this project and some of the resources we’ve found useful contact Erel on 020 7392 2974