Creating a pathway from hostel to home
The issue
Our mission is to support people living in temporary accommodation into their own homes, through a financially sustainable, tailored and innovative model.
-£50.00
how much a single person living in temporary hostel accommodation, working part-time, is likely to have at the end of the month*.
117,450
households living in temporary accommodation in England as of 31st March 2024.
*As estimated by Fat Macy’s, and based on an extremely strict budget.
£1.7bn
spent on temporary accommodation from April 2022 to March 2023, while the government makes it increasingly difficult to leave.
Temporary accommodation is rarely temporary.
Currently, there are 117,450 people living in temporary accommodation in England. They are subjected to the 16-hour per week work cap. If they work more, they lose their housing benefit and must pay high rates of rent and service fees. By our calculation, a single person living in temporary accommodation and working part-time is worse off, being left with -£50.00 at the end of the month.
This catch-22 forces residents to make a stark choice: risk rent arrears or work minimal hours at the cost of moving on. The benefits trap creates a situation where people are incentivised not to work – and often end up worse off if they do.
Fat Macy’s has found a way around this.
Our trainees are able to gain valuable work experience in the hospitality and catering business, receive 1:2:1 support from our Progression and Engagement Officers and gain access to a £1,500 Housing Deposit Grant and £300 of Milestone Grants. Trainees would also receive an additional £200 to support them with moving in. In total, trainees can access up to £2,000 worth of grants to support them on their journey from hostel to home.
Our 2022 impact
Read our impact report reflecting on the successes and impact, alongside lessons learnt in 2022.
By the numbers
8,000
hours work experience
£19k+
awarded to trainees in Milestone and Move On grants
170
participants who have participated in Fat Macy’s training
98
Level 2 food hygiene qualifications awarded
72%
are now in work or training
11
trainees who have moved into their own home
Trainee Testimonials
We have had the pleasure to see our trainees flourish, grow and achieve amazing things. There are their stories.
Emmanuel
Emmanuel was our first ever trainee. In 2016, our paths crossed at the YMCA Crouch End where Emmanuel was living at the time.
Amika
Amika started the Milestone Programme in 2021 having studied Business Management where she got a 2:1. She started off at Ebury in Pimlico and was really keen to work in HR after completing the programme. She helped research and write our policies with our Head of Operations. We helped Amika get her British Passport, worked on her CV and drafted cover letters together in her 1:1 sessions.
We supported Amika in finding work experience in HR with one of our partner organisations - Brookfield Properties. She completed two weeks of HR work experience there, alongside a much larger corporate HR team. She accessed life coaching and 1:1 support from the team. She then found a role as an HR Assistant at MTVH Housing Trust and has been working there ever since.
She applied for and completed her CiPD Level 3 in People Practice, scoring a high mark. She accessed her Housing Deposit Grant in early 2023 and moved into an apartment.
“No matter what’s going on in my life, I’ll always be able to smile because of Fat Macy’s. They changed my life and continue to help me. I’m more confident in my abilities and I’ve learnt a lot. They always believe in me and are always there to talk to. I feel part of a family.”
— Emmanuel, programme graduate