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Regular viewers of the quiz will know just how much I support St-Martin-In-The-Fields. In my time of need having spent two years on the streets of London on my own, they were the ones who came to my rescue and rebuilt me from a shell of a man. They support so many people and not just in London but across the UK and I will support them and shout about them from the rooftops for evermore!

St Martin-in-the-Fields Charity helps homeless and vulnerably housed people. We are best known for our annual BBC Radio 4 Christmas Appeal with St Martin-in-the-Fields, and the money we raise from the Appeal directly supports people through The Connection at St Martin-in-the-Fields and across the UK through the Vicar’s Relief Fund (VRF) and the Frontline Network.

The Connection at St Martin’s offers vital support to people sleeping rough in Westminster so they can get back on their feet. The VRF provides quick emergency grants nationwide, that prevent eviction or help people access accommodation, and the Frontline Network strengthens homelessness services by building relationships,
providing funding and giving frontline workers a platform to share their experience, right across the UK.

For 94 years the BBC and St Martin-in-the-Fields have partnered to raise support from Radio 4 listeners to help homeless and vulnerably housed people. In the last two years the Appeal has raised over £7.7 million.

When Covid-19 struck earlier this year, we knew that we had to rise to the challenge to support both people affected by homelessness and the frontline workers assisting them into accommodation or preventing their eviction. After surveying frontline workers across the UK, we built a VRF Emergency Fund, designed to meet the needs of people affected by the crisis which launched on the 8th April. 

Between April and August, the VRF Emergency Fund awarded £1.6m through 4,649 grants, benefitting 6,866 people.

The Connection remained on the frontline running two hotels during
this time; delivering regular meals, offering access to nurses, supporting people to access drug and alcohol treatment and undertaking remote casework. We know the months ahead will be increasingly difficult and dangerous for people who are either homeless, or at risk of homelessness. Please support the 2020 BBC Radio 4 Christmas Appeal so we can continue this vital work, when it is needed most.  Thank you. 

If you’d like to read a History of the Christmas Appeal presented by Hugh Dennis, click here.