The Ferry Project serves rural communities across Fenland, providing homes, help and hope to people experiencing rural homelessness, a group who often receive much less attention and support than their counterparts in urban areas. 

Homelessness is more difficult to spot in rural communities, but it is a reality for thousands of people across the UK. 

Rural Housing Week was created to highlight the many social and economic benefits of affordable housing to rural communities, an ethos which goes hand in hand with Ferry Project’s mission to lead people out of rural homelessness and into independence. 

Providing affordable housing is an important part of this journey, but it is not the only solution. The Ferry Project provides support in many ways, such as counselling, physical health check ups, education, job training, help with benefits, volunteering opportunities, classes to learn new skills, events to engage with the local community... People are complex, so providing holistic support is the best way to truly ferry them into a life of independence. 

Isolation is a great example of a core issue that most homeless people face, but in a rural context this is often amplified. Isolated people often do not engage with support services. Combine this reality with the fact that these services are few and far between in rural communities, and you’ve created a perfect storm for people to never receive the help they need. Providing routes for people to reintegrate with the local community is a pivotal part of our work, as providing support, friendship and a listening ear can go a long way towards helping people to heal and move forward with their lives. 

Homelessness is a traumatic experience no matter where you’re based, but here at the Ferry Project we believe it’s important to remind people that it is not a problem exclusive to cities; rural communities face it too, and by coming together to provide loving communities and affordable opportunities, perhaps more and more people will find hope and freedom. 

You can find out more about rural homelessness on our Rural Homelessness Podcast, where we discuss the important issues around rural homelessness, hear from those affected by it, and offer some solutions. 

If you would like to support the work of the Ferry Project, you can do so here.