Homeless

Welcome by the Chair

Last year you will remember there were significant problems, which led us to review our service and make some significant and difficult changes. Thanks to great efforts by everyone, we have now turned things around. Not that we are without our critics, but we are also receiving renewed support and encouragement for the work we do.

The service is now designed for three groups:
1. Homeless people who are working on their problems.
2. Wayfarers who are just passing through (they are expected to only stay for a few days), and
3. Those who have recently re-settled.

The latter group is a growing band who will take what housing is offered to them, sometimes very sub-standard, just to get off the streets, and begin to address their often multiple problems. However, until our local councils have a larger supply of suitable housing, and are in a position to offer them to all those who want to get off the streets, then we have little choice. We see it as the highest priority, to get someone into housing when they are motivated, and not to miss the chance.

Since last year we have had a restriction on people from traveller sites at the Hub, in an attempt to restrict numbers, but this policy is continually under review.

Financially, we rely on:
* national and local grants and charitable funding
* local fundraising activities
* local Churches, West Dorset District and town Councils, and many individuals who just turn up with a cheque or tins of food.

We are enormously grateful to all these, who demonstrate their support for this work: Unfortunately, just today I heard the District Council funding (of £3,800) is not being repeated this year. In trying to understand the reasons, it seems the Council feel that the Hub, by offering services, attracts more homeless people to the area.

Volunteers
We are also hugely dependant on our volunteers who give their time and expertise, to work directly with our clients and to help make the Hub a more professional service. They contribute a wide range of skills: from cooking and cleaning to interviewing and supporting the clients, to helping us with grant applications and writing articles for the website.
Do speak to Ellie Stevens if you are moved to help us…

Trustee changes
I would like to also pay a special tribute to Trustees that have left this year: Val Hellen, who has been treasurer since we began;
Sue Pratt, Katrina Thompson, and Anita Harries who have all given so much in time and commitment. They have all been with us a long time and we miss their Trustee contribution, but they still give us support, advice and action, whenever asked. We welcome two new Trustees Nigel Tooth and Mark Stevens, and Rachel Bailey has joined us as Treasurer.

Managers
I want to make a special mention of Bob Matthews and Ann MacDonald, our two managers who face each day with such a positive, constructive and creative approach to our clients' many problems.
You will hear from Bob in a minute.

Events of importance to the Hub this year
* our changing role, with more and more people (we used to call them users, and it has been suggested we now call them Hubbers) being re-housed.
They now need help and support through a difficult transition to a more mainstream life

* A really tragic number of deaths amongst our group. Four in the last year, each of them really missed, in their own very special way.

Last year I spoke about the tensions between the humanity of what we do, and some local views of the Hub and our users. The Hub has, quite unfairly, been blamed for all the problems homeless people bring to the locality. Quite often the groups you see in town are not using the Hub at all, either because they are not homeless, or they are not keen to work on their problems, or don't want to be re-housed, or they may be banned. Some are local people just tagging along. We do regularly discuss this issue with the local police, and plan together how to handle them. The Section 30 did help, and, I understand, is to be repeated.
(A Section 30 order allows police to disperse any group pf people showing anti-social behaviour)

What are the good news stories?
We are still here, and a lot!
1. Over 30 people, that were on the streets last year, are now off the streets and in housing. Two are doing voluntary work and one attended further education to address gaps in his own schooling.
2. Our near neighbours are happier with us, in one case donating decorating materials, and Christmas decorations as a gesture of support to the newly rehoused. 3 We have started a web site which is visited a lot and keeps us in the news.
4. We are working more closely with Weymouth's homeless initiative. It is in our interests that they improve their services, as we certainly inherit some "drift" up here.
5. We are discussing with a housing association how to work more in partnership with them to increase our professionalism and increase our chances of more secure funding.
6. A mental health worker will soon be adding their expertise to the team, and we are grateful to the NHS for seeing the need to get to these clients more quickly

Summary
We will continue to provide services to a very needy group of homeless and recently housed people. We are very short of space at the Hub, and locally the greatest lack is of a wet house.

Our group of clients is very needy, often hard to reach, and hard to manage. They are often funny and insightful but can also be very disorganised, occasionally threatening and often difficult. These are the people who often have not been helped by mainstream services. We pride ourselves on our independence and finding creative ways to meet their needs when other statutary services don't.