THE Government has pledged that Cornwall is to receive more than £7 million to help with tackling the problem of homelessness in the county - an announcement which came on a weekend in which a homeless man was allegedly assaulted by a group of youths in Truro.

The Minister for Rough Sleeping and Housing, Eddie Hughes MP, has confirmed that Cornwall Council will be receiving £7,469,139 as part of the Rough Sleeping Accommodation Programme 2021-24 funding allocations.

In March 2021 the Government launched the 2021-24 phase of the Rough Sleeping Accommodation Programme, with £212 million made available for local authorities and registered providers to bid for, in order to provide move-on homes and accompanying support services to people rough sleeping or those with a history of rough sleeping.

Funding made available will total £433 million over the lifetime of the programme and will provide 6,000 units across England.

A Government spokesperson said: “The Rough Sleeping Accommodation Programme has built on the Government’s unprecedented pandemic response to protect those who are sleeping rough, which has supported at least 37,000 individuals during the pandemic, with more than 26,000 already successfully moved on to longer-term accommodation.

“The Government will be spending over £2 billion to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping over the next three years, demonstrating our commitment to build on recent progress.”

Welcoming the news was Truro and Falmouth’s Member of Parliament Cherilyn Mackrory, who said: “I am pleased to see the Government continue to recognise the importance of tackling homelessness, and it is good to see Cornwall Council awarded nearly seven and a half million pounds to help those rough sleeping break the cycle and get off the streets.

“Cornwall Council did a commendable job of helping these particularly vulnerable people during the pandemic and I look forward to seeing the deployment of this new funding to continue to provide this support through 2022 and beyond.”

However, there was shock and outrage over the weekend when a defenceless homeless man sleeping rough in the Moorfield multi-storey car park in Truro was allegedly kicked and punched by a gang of teenagers in an incident apparently recorded in video footage and shared on Facebook. Cherilyn Macrory has condemned this attack in her constituency as "disgusting and abhorrent". She added: "Truly shocking and deeply saddening. This should not be happening in our city."In an official statement issued today (Monday), Devon and Cornwall Police say they are investigating a serious assault on a homeless male in Truro, which occurred in Moorfield Carpark approximately between 10-10:15pm on Saturday, 12 February, and six teenagers are currently in custody in connection with this investigation.Detective Inspector Steve Moorcroft said: “We are aware of footage that is circulating across social media which appears to show an horrific assault on a homeless man by a gang of teenagers, in Truro.“Six teenagers are currently in police custody having been arrested in connection to this incident and enquires continue into this matter.“I wish to reassure the public that the matter is being dealt with, but ask that for the sake of the victim, that people do not share the footage of the attack.“Anyone with any information is asked to contact [email protected] quoting log 973 12 February.”