Cambridge Ops for Mini Modular Homes

People experiencing homelessness in Cambridge will soon be housed in new micro-homes around the city centre.

Created by homelessness charity Jimmy’s and the Allia Future Business Centre, the six modular homes are some of the first of their kind in the UK.

There will be five homes for those experiencing homelessness, and a sixth unit will be for the support team, on Newmarket Road, on the grassy lawn adjacent to the Christ the Redeemer Church.

The modular-style homes are to be “temporary,” with permission sought for three years and will be available early this year.

If the land, currently unused, is needed for other uses, then the homes can then be relocated elsewhere, since they are portable, with residents having the choice to move with them.

They are also being built by a social enterprise, New Meaning, that employs people who have faced homelessness themselves.

Jimmy’s support team will provide daily, high-quality, intensive support to help make this new opportunity work for each person and break the cycle of homelessness.

Jimmy’s will also work with each person to find more permanent accommodation during the time they are living there.

The modular homes will only have 25 square metres of internal floor space – even though council policy states homes should be above 37 square metres – but it will be an “efficiently designed space that creates a separate bedroom, bathroom and utility room, with a shower and washing machine, and an open plan living [and] kitchen area,” according to the planning application.

The charity is seeking funds to help them furnish and equip items that will transfer the houses into homes.

It has been suggested by councillors that more micro-homes for the homeless could be built elsewhere, such as on Parker’s Piece.

In November, Allia acting chief executive Martin Clark said more of the homes are in the pipeline.

These six homes were approved by Cambridge City Council in November.

Source: Cambridgeshire Live