CHARLOTTE MURPHY

Help those at risk of homelessness stay off the streets

Fundraising for Community Housing Aid
£581
raised of £500 target
Donations cannot currently be made to this page
Langport Ladies Novice Triathlon, 17 September 2016
Community Housing Aid

Verified by JustGiving

RCN 1071945
We provide advice and practical support to reduce and prevent homelessness in Devon

Story

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On Sat 17th September 2016 I shall be competing in the Langport Ladies Novice Triathlon. This will include:

  • 200m of swimming
  • 15km of cycling
  • 3km of running 

I did my first tri last year doing breast stroke, but this year I have challenged myself to learn front crawl; something I cannot do at all - in fact, the first couple of weeks training my coach had me in tears as I felt it was just impossible. I am persevering though and hope that I can conquer through and not drown!


I want to raise much-needed funds for Community Housing Aid (CHA)to raise funds for vulnerable adolescents and adults who are  homeless or threatened with homelessness.

Why?

My brother, James has suffered with an alcohol and drug addiction for many years and at the beginning of this year he nearly lost his life to double-sided pneumonia and he spent over a month in Exeter Hospital. His body has been under massive strain over the years and although he had a period of 10+ years of sobriety he unfortunately fell back into his problems last year .

Whilst in hospital James confessed to us that he had let things slip and that he had started drinking again, this being something he had managed to keep from us for over a year. He asked us to go to his flat for him and when we entered I cannot begin to describe the massive shock we were faced with - due to the lack of care for himself and his home it was unfit for living in. It was heartbreaking to think that someone you love so dearly can live like that and keep it from us. A visit from the hospital confirmed the flat was unsanitary and it was condemned as unsafe to live in due to the state it was in. 

We were faced with the prospect of him becoming homeless.

Bay 6 stepped in to support us and I do not know how we would have coped without them. They ensured he was given a lifeline so desperately needed in helping to provide a safe place for him to live. They have provided practical support, care and information to help him find his own solutions to some of his many problems. 

We will all be eternally grateful to the support they have offered James and the comfort we as a family have received at their continued care.

The difficulties I need to overcome with my swimming are insignificant to those who need a roof over their heads. So please dig deep and offer as much as you can towards enabling keeping vulnerable people safe and off the streets.

  • £7 - covers daily travel for a young person to college,job etc
  • £25 - ensures 1 young person can be housed for a night in temporary accommodation
  • £40 - refers a homeless person to Devon Mediation Services
  • £70 - provides a tenancy workshop to help someone find a home
  • £126 - a young person can be hosted for a week in a crashpad
  • £300 - covers 1 day of training for the volunteers on homeless issues
  • £1000 - ensures that they can keep 40 young people safe for the night

Information about the charity and the projects they run can be found below.

Community Housing Aid, a registered charity, has been in existence since 1990, working to relieve the poverty, sickness and distress of people who are homeless or vulnerably housed in Exeter and the surrounding local authority areas. They work to support some of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged people in society to achieve this. Their work is distinctive for two reasons:

  • Focusing on the needs of the whole person, understanding that homelessness rarely occurs in isolation and that there will be other issues that will also require resolution 
  • Finding affordable and sustainable solutions to homelessness for people who would either be categorised as “non priority” by their local authority - often described as the “hidden homeless,” or who need support from a range of different services, and who consequently fall into the gaps between services.

Whilst some may have to sleep rough, many are sleeping on sofas and floors, often in environments that expose them to exploitation, harm and abuse.

For CHA, it is important that any solutions they find with clients are affordable and sustainable so that clients have the best chance of breaking any cycles of disadvantage that may have contributed to their
homelessness. This includes:

  • Working with clients to maximise their income and to ensure they understand how to budget
  • How to assess affordability
  • How to manage benefits
  • What their rights and responsibilities as tenants are
  • Ensuring that clients have appropriate support in their accommodation (often through linking in with other organisations in the community)

They work to achieve these goals by providing advice and practical support, currently through the following projects:

Bay6 - works with people who are in the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital who are at risk of being discharged homeless. They work with them to find short and longer term accommodation that meets their health needs, providing support to resolve debt and benefits issues and liaising with other support agencies as needed. Last year they worked with 107 people, housing 92 of them prior to discharge from hospital.

Nightstop Devon – same day emergency accommodation in the homes of volunteer hosts for young people aged 16-25 who may be homeless or at risk from becoming homeless. Ongoing support is provided to the young people to prevent long term homelessness. This has operated since 2002, and last year, they provided 458 bednights for 98 young people.

PLEASE HELP ME RAISE MUCH NEEDED FUNDS

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About the charity

Community Housing Aid

Verified by JustGiving

RCN 1071945
We give advice and practical support to people who are homeless or vulnerably housed: Nightstop Devon provides emergency accommodation for young people Bay6 works with patients at Exeter & Torbay Hospitals who are homeless on discharge Offender Resettlement in Exeter & Torbay Debt & Benefits Advice

Donation summary

Total raised
£580.02
+ £102.75 Gift Aid
Online donations
£499.02
Offline donations
£81.00

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