Latest news with #GeelongProject
Hindustan Times
6 days ago
- General
- Hindustan Times
Prince William to celebrate Princess Diana's birthday today with special plans
Prince William is set to honor his late mother Princess Diana's philanthropic legacy by setting out a major progressive milestone for his non-profit organization, the Homewards Initiative on July 1. The date would have been the former Princess of Wales' 64th birthday and marks the second anniversary of the project. The initiative aims to be on the path to eliminating homelessness by 2028. Prince William has special plans to mark Princess Diana's birthday. (File/ AP) The Prince of Wales will begin the day by meeting with representatives of all six UK regions (Sheffield, Newport in South Wales, Aberdeen in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Lambeth in London) picked as pilot test areas for the projects. This will be followed by a visit to a Sheffield school to witness the impact of an intervention model called 'Upstream' which aims to detect people at risk of homelessness and offer them premature support. The model is based on the Geelong Project in Australia. The day will mark some of the first residents moving into and officially being beneficiaries of Sheffield's Innovative Housing project. Prince William's open letter Ahead of his planned visit on July 1, the prince recently shared an open letter addressed to representatives of the six pilot test regions by writing, 'Your experiences are what makes Homewards unique and powerful. We can harness our collective capabilities, expertise, and resources towards this common cause. I am immensely proud to say that your collective effort has already allowed us to achieve lasting impact." "I am confident we can lead and inspire understanding, empathy, and optimism that homelessness can be ended," he added. 'Focus is also important, and you have identified the groups particularly at risk of homelessness in your locations to drive solutions that show it is possible to prevent their homelessness.' "While visiting the six locations, I have been inspired by the motivation, creativity, and expertise that is embodied in each location and the tangible difference you are making for some of society's most vulnerable,' he wrote. He signed off the letter by writing, 'Keep going!' What is the Homewards Initiative? Launched in 2023, the Homewards Initiative is an effort undertaken by Prince William and The Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales which aims 'to demonstrate that it's possible to end homelessness – making it rare, brief, and unrepeated'. According to its official website, it is 'a transformative 5-year program, locally-led in 6 flagship locations around the UK, providing up to £500,000 of funding for each location, bringing together dozens of partner organizations, from frontline homelessness charities to big businesses and employing a local Homewards lead for each location.' The cause is inspired by shelter visits undertaken by the prince along with his brother Prince Harry during their mother's noted charitable efforts and hence holds a deep personal relevance for him. The initiative recently secured a financial investment of $500 million from Lloyds Bank to support the effort of constructing about 100 affordable housing projects across six regions. 'During my time at Shelter — and before — we have seen other joined-up initiatives that have sought to tackle homelessness and those have been valuable. But they have, in the main, focused on crisis intervention. We need to get out of this idea that crisis intervention is going to end homelessness. That's because the primary causes of homelessness are systemic,' said Polly Neate, former CEO of U.K. charities Shelter and Women's Aid, to PEOPLE. 'Having somebody like Prince William being very clear that it is possible to prevent homelessness, it is possible to end it, is hugely impactful and we are already seeing that,' she adds. By Stuti Gupta
Mint
7 days ago
- Business
- Mint
On Diana's birth anniversary, Prince William advances Homewards' mission
Prince William is marking what would have been Princess Diana's 64th birth anniversary with a significant step forward in his campaign to combat homelessness. According to People, on July 1, the Prince of Wales will visit Sheffield to observe the second anniversary of his Homewards initiative. Launched in 2023, Homewards aims to make homelessness 'rare, brief and unrepeated'. The cause holds deep personal significance for William, whose late mother frequently took him and Prince Harry to shelters during their childhood. Her legacy of compassion continues to shape his efforts today. William's July 1 visit to Sheffield includes meetings with representatives from six regions piloting local approaches to homelessness — Sheffield, Newport, Aberdeen, Northern Ireland, Bournemouth-Christchurch-Poole, and Lambeth in London. In a public letter, he acknowledged the progress so far and urged continued focus. 'Your experiences are what makes Homewards unique and powerful. We have the ability to harness our collective capabilities, expertise, and resources towards this common cause,' he wrote. The prince praised the transition into 'delivery mode' across sites and highlighted targeted strategies for populations most at risk. 'Focus is important,' he added. One of the major developments William is set to celebrate is a funding breakthrough. People reports that Homewards secured over $50 million from Lloyds Bank to develop affordable housing across the six areas. The initiative calls this a 'groundbreaking moment,' and hopes it will encourage similar support from other institutions. At a school in Sheffield, William will also observe a new intervention model inspired by Australia's Geelong Project. The UK version, titled 'Upstream,' seeks to identify young people at risk of homelessness and offer timely support. The Australian model led to a 40 per cent drop in youth homelessness. Experts say Homewards is making the right moves at the right time. Lydia Stazen, former Executive Director of the Institute of Global Homelessness, called the project 'exactly where I would expect it to be,' as reported by People. Polly Neate, former Shelter CEO, credited William's leadership. 'Having somebody like Prince William say it is possible to end homelessness is hugely impactful,' she said. William has maintained that Homewards complements existing efforts rather than replaces them. 'It's about the people who hold trust within those local communities,' he said, and empowering them to make change happen. Homewards is a UK-based homelessness prevention campaign launched by Prince William in 2023. It aims to make homelessness rare, brief and unrepeated through localised, long-term solutions. Prince William has long been committed to the issue, inspired by his late mother Princess Diana, who took him and Prince Harry to shelters to understand the human side of homelessness. In its second year, Homewards has launched over 100 projects across six UK locations and secured over $50 million in funding to support housing development and community programs. Unlike many crisis-focused responses, Homewards centres on early intervention and systemic change, working closely with local communities to prevent homelessness before it begins.
