Gordon’s Brown’s comments come as Prince William and the former Labour Prime Minister join forces on major homelessness project to help ‘houses become homes’
Prince William today joins forces with Gordon Brown to shine a spotlight on the tragedy of homelessness and demonstrate it can be prevented.
The former Labour Prime Minister’s charity is helping furnish homes provided by the Prince Of Wales with essential goods such as cookers, fridges, washing machines, and utensils.
Mr Brown told the Mirror their joint partnership – alongside major UK retailers – will aim to prevent homelessness by helping “houses become homes” for struggling families. He said Prince William was following in the “great tradition” of his mother Princess Diana, who campaigned for a ban on landmines, challenged the stigma around HIV and AIDs, and brought light to issues not given the attention they deserve.
Mr Brown said: “I think dealing with the tragedy of homelessness, the possibilities of solving the problem is what Prince William is doing. It’s not just drawing attention to homelessness but addressing it by getting people into houses that become homes because they are probably furnished.”
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On Monday the former PM will announce the joint partnership with Prince William’s Homewards – a five-year programme aimed at making homelessness “rare, brief and unrepeated”. Mr Brown’s Multibank scheme was set up in Fife in 2021 to tackle poverty by rescuing surplus goods such as bedding, toys and clothes, from firms and giving them to people in need.
Multibank will now furnish 250 homes being provided by Homeward in six areas, including Aberdeen, Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole, Lambeth, Newport, Northern Ireland and Sheffield. They will be helped by major firms, including B&Q, Bosch Home Appliances, DFS Group and IKEA. It builds on a collaboration between the duo in Aberdeen inspired by research showing an individual is likely to remain in a tenancy when properties are furnished.
Mr Brown told The Mirror: “Prince William has taken the initiative of providing homes and we’re helping the initiative by providing some of the furnishings. That includes things like fridges, cookers and washing machines, but it also includes the utensils, and some of the other furnishings.
“A million children tonight will sleep without a bed of their own, so we are providing beds, bedding like duvets, and other household goods including toiletries by the way. Many people try to buy the food and can’t afford the soap, the toothpaste, and the shampoo.”
He added: “People are seeing their houses properly furnished and we know – there’s evidence it makes people not only proud of their homes, but it prevents further homelessness.”
In an ITV documentary last year – Prince William: We Can End Homelessness – the future King recalled visiting homeless charity The Passage with his mother in 1993 at the age of 11. Prince William – now a patron of the charity – said in the documentary he had “taken inspiration and guidance from what my mother did, particularly with homelessness”.
He said it had helped him see “outside the palace walls”. Responding to questions whether he was the right person to lead the project given his own immense privilege, the Prince told ITV at the time: “I think everyone having a right to a safe, stable home benefits us all. I come with no other agenda other than desperately trying to help people who are in need and see that as part of my role. Why else would I be here if I’m not using this role properly to influence and help people while I can. I like a big challenge, I do like that, but I can’t do it on my own.”
Mr Brown added: “Prince William has drawn attention to homelessness just as he’s drawn attention to mental health and was in Brazil drawing attention to the need to do something for a sustainable environment. I think he’s following in the great tradition that was led by his mother, who focused on HIV and AIDS, she focused on landmines. She was someone who drew attention to causes that previously had not been given the public attention they deserve.
“I think Prince William focusing on homelessness, he shows people can get into a position where they are homeless on the streets, or about to be on the streets because there is an emergency they can’t cope with, like a death in the family, a redundancy, or a cancer, or simply just a break-up of a family. People don’t know where to turn when it happens and it can end up with an eviction.”
Hazel Detsiny, executive director of homelessness at The Royal Foundation, said: “This partnership is a powerful example of major industry players — even competitors — coming together to tackle a pressing societal challenge. Homewards is looking to collaborate with businesses across all sectors to address the deeper causes of homelessness, including housing, financial stability, and employment. Together, we can show what’s truly possible when businesses become part of the solution.”