Waltham Forest Nightshelter- helping Walthamstow's homeless population

The Waltham Forest Churches nightshelter has been going since 1996 and in 2005 moved to its present home at 740 Forest Road. To give you an idea of the difference it makes to some of the most vulnerable people in our borough in the last two years alone it has helped over 315 homeless people in Waltham Forest. Of those it has substantial success supporting residents to find a safe and secure place to live including returning 77 to their friends and family, 94 into private accommodation and 34 into supported housing. Whatever the weather there is always a waiting list for a place at the shelter during the night,and the day centre is often packed out. Indeed, during 2006 alone over 15,000 people made visits to the day centre. The shelter isn't just somewhere warm to go; it also acts as an access point for resources for many homeless people in our borough, offering services ranging from healthcare assistance, skills training and mental health outreach support to laundry and washing facilities. It is run mostly by volunteers, with over 200 from 25 churches across the borough, and 16 members of staff including a resettlement worker and night staff. It is funded by a range of sources including the Council and national Government, but like many local volunteer-led projects continually needs to raise funds to keep going. To give you a sense of the money they need to raise, on Saturday I took part in a fundraising quiz which raised over £600 for the shelter- enough to keep the day centre open for a weekend. Just £3 would fund a hot meal a resident for a week and £15 would pay for an hour's literacy lesson to be provided. The team are always looking for more donations either of time or money so if you can help support this project either through making a donation or through volunteering at the centre yourself please do get in touch.