YMCA East Surrey wins national Youth Matters award for NextStep housing initiative

An innovative scheme, partnering landlords with tenants, set up and run by YMCA East Surrey, has won the prestigious YMCA England & Wales’ Youth Matters national Housing Project of the Year Award 2025.

Jenny Hawes, Housing Projects Manager and the lead for NextStep, together with colleagues from the charity’s housing team, picked up the trophy on Friday 14th November. They were congratulated by BBC TV presenter and event host Richie Anderson.

Housing Projects Manager Jenny Hawes holds the trophy, accompanied by Lee Fabry, Natalie Sharpe, Sarah Dilworth, Alice Lister and Will Andrews with TV presenter Richie Anderson.

Last year, the NextStep housing initiative found homes for 116 households in East Surrey and prevented four other families from becoming homeless through timely intervention.

Jenny Hawes said, “Landlords in the region are very loyal to the NextStep service. We provide continuity and support throughout the course of the tenancy, which we strive to maintain and run efficiently on a permanent basis. We are constantly looking for additional private landlords, whether they have a one-bedroomed flat or a five-bedroomed house.

“It’s an honour for YMCA East Surrey to win this award and we are hugely grateful to be working in partnership with two local councils – Reigate & Banstead Borough since 2003 and Tandridge District since 2011.

“We foster strong relationships and our initiative not only alleviates the housing crisis, where many young people are living in temporary accommodation but also builds better connected neighbourhoods.”

In England in March 2025 there were 131,140 households including nearly 170,000 children in temporary accommodation, an increase of 12% on the previous year.

An East Surrey-based landlord said, “Not only can we rely on the NextStep team to look out for ours and the tenants’ best interests, but the vast knowledge on the rental sector has been excellent for us. The constantly changing landscape and Government Legislation is a lot to keep up with, but we can always trust YMCA East Surrey to keep us informed.”

Finding private rented accommodation is difficult due to high upfront costs, a competitive market, and potential issues with property quality and tenancy agreements.

The NextStep housing project uniquely tackles homelessness in East Surrey by providing essential advice and sourcing private rented accommodation for individuals and families. Since its inception over 25 years ago, NextStep has secured sustainable accommodation via 400 landlords for over 2,000 local households and provided housing advice to more than 3,500 individuals.

Through collaboration, NextStep can provide this free service for property owners and provides ongoing support about changes in legislation while ensuring tenants have access to quality homes.

An East Surrey tenant said, “If it wasn’t for you, I would be struggling to get a roof over me and my son’s head. From the first point of contact to signing my tenancy agreement, you’ve been very attentive and supportive of the process and I can’t thank you enough. Please keep up what you are doing and changing people’s lives for the better.”