Vision

London, like many big cities is an exciting place to be.

However, for some, its streets are a place to go when things have gone profoundly wrong and there is nowhere else.

When people are on the edge, rough sleeping, isolated and in despair there must be a place to turn. The Connection is there to be with people as they overcome their problems, recover and move on to a meaningful, fulfilling life.

However, this is not enough. The experiences of people on the edge matter. Their story must be told to those in a position of power and influence, so that rough sleeping is not an accepted feature of life in the UK.

Mission

The Connection empowers people who are pushed to the edge, to move away from the streets for good by:

• Supporting people to recognise their own strengths, recover from crisis and move away from rough sleeping for good;

• Working with other specialist services to ensure that everyone receives the right support at the right time;

• Giving a voice to people we support and sharing their experiences with those in power, to create the changes we need to build a society where nobody is forced to sleep rough.

Values

We have four values that guide everything we do

Curious

We are respectfully curious about our clients and colleagues, our stakeholders, our work, and the relationships between us. We reflect on our successes and failures to improve our work.

We embrace change and new ideas; whilst respecting the process of change. We seek opportunities in crises; remaining solution focused, open and engaged.

Safe

We recognise the fear and danger associated with street homelessness and actively promote the emotional and physical safety of everyone at The Connection. We address power dynamics in support, team, management and governance relationships: by being honest, transparent, consistent and boundaried; by allowing time for trust to develop; and ensuring all our interactions are validating and affirming.

We are attuned to cultural, historical and gender issues; and address inequality, discrimination and prejudice wherever we see it.

Together

We work “with not for” at all levels by promoting choice, respecting autonomy, mutually defining barriers and developing shared plans.

We respect individual meaning making and seek a common language with the people we support; using everyday language and peoples’ own words. We recognise that the relationships we form are the most important part of our work.

There is no “us and them” only “us” in our work with clients and with each other regardless of organizational hierarchy.

Motivated

We are optimistic, dynamic and pragmatic as we support clients and each other to achieve goals and ambitions.

We have high standards for ourselves, aiming to lead by example in being proactive to get things done, attentive to detail and creative in approach.

We seek out good practice, share information and expertise and celebrate success.