University of Derby students learn the business of housing the homeless in first collaboration with Derventio Housing Trust

University of Derby students have been given the opportunity to learn important business skills from award-winning homeless accommodation provider Derventio Housing Trust – in the first collaboration of its kind in the city.

Derventio Housing Trust started out in 2002 as a night shelter in Derby and has now grown to be a Community Interest Company providing more than 700 single bed spaces of accommodation to people in five UK counties who might otherwise be homeless.

Now Derventio has been collaborating with the University of Derby after agreeing to be a case study for second year students learning business as part of their degree.

Dr Bruno Gallotta, a lecturer in Operations Management at the University of Derby, said this was the first time he had worked with a housing trust to help business students learn the vital skills of how to run a successful enterprise. He said:

Derventio Housing Trust provides a vital service for those it is helping, and as such has been an interesting case study for our students. Universities play a crucial role in preparing students for diverse career paths, including opportunities in various types of organisations from private corporations to non-profits, government agencies and social enterprises. Working with a social housing company also gives our students a deeper appreciation of the social issues related to housing, such as affordability, homelessness, and community development.

He said today’s cohort of young people were also increasingly interested in working for businesses offering social value in terms of sustainability or helping those in need of support, and that some Derby students were now expressing an interest in working for service-based organisations such as Derventio, having learned about how they were run.

As part of the collaboration, representatives from Derventio Housing Trust came to the university to provide sessions in which students were able to ask questions about the way their organisation operated.

Jackie Carpenter, assistant director of strategy for Derventio Housing Trust – who has been working for the organisation since its inception – said:

We were delighted to help the University of Derby by providing ourselves as a case study for their business module. In order to conduct our work at Derventio Housing Trust, we have to function in a businesslike way. We are very proud of our sound business practices as they enable us to help more people every year. We were delighted to be able to show students in Derby that there are all kinds of organisations in the world and that it is possible to apply their business skills in different environments, including one like ours which is providing housing and support to those who have been through some very tough times in their lives.

Derventio Housing Trust operates in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Warwickshire, Wiltshire and Staffordshire. Through its dedicated housing and support officers, Derventio helps people not just with housing but with a whole range of other support such as counselling for drug and alcohol use; equine therapy to help with confidence, plus support services to help with getting back into work. Its Growing Lives project in Ilkeston provides craft sessions, woodworking, gardening and communal walks to give people a safe space and life skills, enabling them to overcome hurdles and get their lives back on track.