Mill House

Mill House opened in Portsmouth in the autumn of 1977 as a Direct Access Hostel.

We are able to accommodate 47 single homeless men and women between the ages of 18 to 65.  All single rooms with communal lounges, it is staffed 24 hours a day supplying full board.

Residents are encouraged to participate in the running of the project with regular house and menu planning meetings.

Every resident is allocated a key worker and we carry out a full assessment of a residents' needs within the first 28 days. This will help towards securing an appropriate ‘move on’ option for them.

We have the Two Saints learning scheme ‘The Base’ on site for residents, boasting an extensive IT suite offering a variety of courses.

Drinking, in moderation, is permitted on the premises.

The staff work closely with other agencies such as Housing Options, Cranstoun Services, Kingsway House and Central Point. We also have strong links with Probation, Social Services, Health and the Police. We have a visiting GP service that holds a weekly surgery on site. Along with all of this Two Saints has a variety of accommodation options in Portsmouth for ‘move on’ and specialist needs.

30TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS FOR MILL HOUSE

Mill House Opened on October 3^rd 1977 and had 2 in residence by the end of the first day. By the end of the second week we were over subscribed, we had beds for 24 people and actually accommodated 30, with 6 sleeping on mattresses in a large room. 3 staff covered the 12 hour day and at weekends one staff member covered the whole day and did the cooking; there was no funding for a weekend cook. We would often have to cover the night as well so a weekend could be a 48 hour shift. Since filling the project after the second week, Mill House has remained full for 30 years and it has also been at the forefront of homeless services in Portsmouth ever since. In this time many, many residents have passed through the doors and we have witnessed many success stories and helped people to gain independent living. The client group has not changed that much, probably today we see more drug issues than alcohol and many more people with a mental health issue, but the average age is almost the same as it was all those years ago. We do of course take in women now, originally it was exclusively for men when we opened due to most of the accommodation being shared rooms. One of our rooms had 14 beds in it, not the best of places to sleep. Today this has obviously changed, we have 47 single bedrooms and a much larger staff group, and of course a kitchen team and a night team.

Contact and Referrals (Self or Agency)

Mill House
Milton Road 
Portsmouth
PO3 6BA