YMCA Edinburgh, in partnership with Bethany Christian Trust and Harbour, are organising two opportunities to share your experiences of the Covid-19 pandemic is part of the Lets Be Heard programme.
We are trying to reach as many people in Leith as possible so the voices and stories of Leiths pandemic experiences are heard.
Our sessions will be on the 24th of October at 1 p.m and 6p.m at the Harbour offices.
The events are open to anyone over 16 who live, work or volunteer in Leith and were here during lockdown.
The City of Edinburgh Council and national homelessness charity Bethany Christian Trust are operating a Welcome Centre this winter.
The Centre is providing accommodation of last resort, tailored support and positive move on options for people who would otherwise be sleeping on the streets. Since opening in October, it has already supported and accommodated over 500 people and will continue to operate over Christmas until May 2023.
Founded by Bethany Christian Trust in partnership with the Council, and supported by the Scottish Government, the Welcome Centre was pioneered in 2020 in an emergency response to the outbreak of Covid-19, providing en-suite rooms as a deliberate move away from congregate shelter provision, and has since helped to establish a new model of tailored support for people rough sleeping.
The Welcome Centre takes an innovative and person-centred approach, providing 24 hour tailored support for individuals all in one place. Guests receive their own en-suite room and 3 meals a day, including a hot evening meal prepared by volunteers.
They are also able to work with dedicated staff and visiting professional services with support to access longer term accommodation as well as on site assistance with mental health, addiction, wellbeing, health needs and accessing benefits.
Councillor Jane Meagher, the Council’s Convener of Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work, said:“When temperatures drop to this extent it’s more important than ever that we do all that we can to support anyone who may be at risk.
“With Bethany we’re operating a Welcome Centre this winter to provide an additional 65 beds for people with wrap around support, and demand for this service this winter has already been high.
“We’re also offering street-based outreach seven days a week through our partners to anyone we see rough sleeping and this involves checking in with people three times a night, specialist pharmacy and mental health services available on street and supporting people directly into Rapid Access Accommodation.
“The rise in homelessness we’re witnessing in Edinburgh is deeply concerning and the Council has a campaign to spread awareness of the support which exists for people who are struggling financially. We need to prevent more people from becoming homeless as far as we possibly can.”
Commenting on the increase in demand for the service, Alasdair Bennett, Chief Executive at Bethany Christian Trust said: “The Welcome Centre provides emergency en-suite accommodation of last resort for anyone who would otherwise be sleeping rough in Edinburgh.
“We have accomodated over 500 different people with the majority staying less than seven nights as they are assisted to rapidly move on to more appropriate accommodation. The centre is a place of warm welcome, hospitality and intensive support, tailored to the individual and involving multiple health, housing and charitable partners to respond to individual needs.
“We are seeing an increase in the number of people attending and being referred for this crisis intervention, even prior to the colder weather coming in, and we are working with all partners to find alternative options when there are no available bed spaces at the Centre. With a focus on rapidly re-accommodating people, new bedrooms become available at a rate of about 50 each week, or 7 a day, in order to support individuals in crisis that night.
“Even when we are full we are able to provide food, warm clothing and access to support here at the Welcome Centre, so we encourage anyone who is at risk of rough sleeping that night to come and we will do all that we can to support them, including linking them up with partner agencies and local authority housing options.”
Relying on the financial support of the general public, local churches, trusts, businesses, the City of Edinburgh Council and the Scottish Government, the Welcome Centre shows what can be possible when the people of Edinburgh come together to create change.
With a large professional staff team, over 1,000 Bethany volunteers and more than 20 visiting partner services, the Welcome Centre saw remarkable success in 2021 – 2022 in helping people recover from the crisis of homelessness and move on to a more stable situation.
The service accommodated and supported over 860 individuals who had fallen into homelessness because of a wide range of circumstances as well as those rough sleeping, with 97% of known outcomes positive.
Bethany’s Buy a Bed campaign, which is vital in enabling the service, is also in place again this year and gift vouchers can be purchased in Bethany Shops and online:
QAVS recognition for Edinburgh’s Care Van volunteers
Those who have provided community support and empowered others receive highest number of awards
Awardees include volunteers working in food banks, hospices and fundraising
The highest award given to local volunteer groups, The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, is being awarded to 244 organisations across the UK today in recognition of their outstanding community service.
Among them is Edinburgh’s Care Van volunteers, a project run by Edinburgh City Mission in partnership with Bethany Christian Trust and 40 local churches.
The van is an important source of care and support for people who are homeless and vulnerable in the capital.
Relying on volunteers, it goes out almost every day of the year providing soup, food, hot drinks, blankets and clothes, friendship, encouragement and advice to up to 60 people a night who are rough sleeping or housed in homeless B&B accommodation by Edinburgh Council.
Edinburgh City Mission co-ordinates rotas for over 40 teams that are drawn from local churches across the Lothians and includes over 750 volunteers.
Last year organisers celebrated 30 years since the Care Van first took to the streets of Edinburgh to provide food and comfort to people in need. Throughout Edinburgh’s Covid-19 lockdown, the evening and lunchtime teams have served over 20,000 meals.
Charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland receive the prestigious award for their volunteer-led work across a wide range of fields including mental health, youth, community, arts and heritage.
This year 204 organisations from England, 22 from Scotland, five from Wales and 13 from Northern Ireland will receive The Queen’s Award, highlighting the continued breadth and depth of voluntary service undertaken each and every day across the United Kingdom.
The awardees have all enhanced the lives of others through their work with the highest number of awards this year going to the community support sector, which includes food banks, village shops, fundraising events and men’s sheds.
Minister for Civil Society and Youth Nigel Huddleston said: “Our volunteers give up their time to help others and The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service recognises their selfless acts of generosity and kindness.
“I congratulate all the awardees whose hard work and dedication is rightly recognised in this milestone year of The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.”
Sir Martyn Lewis, QAVS Chair said: “I warmly congratulate all the outstanding voluntary groups who have been rewarded with a Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service this year.
“The level of commitment and innovation shown by these volunteers is truly impressive. We owe a debt of gratitude to them, and the countless others who give up their free time regularly to improve the lives of others in their community.”
Empowering others is also an area well represented in this year’s Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service with confidence building, training opportunities, educational support and sports all highly recognised. Volunteers working in hospices, cancer support, long-term illness, search and rescue and first aid also feature prominently.
Coinciding with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service recognises that volunteers continue to provide a vital social function and improve access to services across the country.
As well asThis year’s recipients also include:
Knockmany Running Club in County Tyrone which utilises an unused forest to provide a space for all ages to run, walk and ramble through accessible trails.
Cymru Creations in Gwent is a team of professionals who give their time to run an award-winning film academy, helping young people to create their own films and develop skills.
Bright Minds Big Futures which is a youth led movement in Stockton-on-Tees providing social action opportunities for young people and working very positively with the council to make Stockton a better place to live.
The Buddy Bag Foundation is providing support bags to children arriving in refuges which include toiletries, pyjamas, socks and underwear, in addition to comfort items such as a book and a teddy bear. It creates and supplies over 10,000 each year which helps to restore a sense of safety to the children in the West Midlands.
1st Buckie Company Boys’ Brigade is challenging young people from 6 to18 years old through physical and skills-based activities, community involvement and spiritual development in Banffshire.
The Oasis Centre which is creating communities in four parishes in Cornwall with multiple economic, health and well-being needs through food provision, social events and practical advice.
Students from Edinburgh College Midlothian Campus have marked the completion of their ground-breaking homelessness awareness project this month.
The students took part in Leonard Cheshire’s ‘Can Do’ programme, during which they decided to embark on a ‘building communities’ project to raise funds for, and awareness of, the needs of people in the community who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
Delivered by the pan-disability charity Leonard Cheshire, Can Do is a skills development and community involvement programme designed for 16-35 year olds with additional support needs.
With both in-person and virtual formats, the participants took part in sessions on fundraising, mental health and wellbeing, designing posters and much more. The project gave the students an opportunity to make a positive difference in the community, improving their confidence and motivation, while also providing a learning opportunity. Participants gained an SVQ Building Communities award through completion of their project.
In one session, the students learned about homelessness and discussed some essential items you might need for winter as a homeless person.
Following this, they were tasked with some online shopping to create ‘care and share’ bags to donate. Each participant was given tasks, such as budgeting, comparing prices and spotting deals, before ordering and receiving the items, and packing the bags.
These bags, as well as all proceeds from the campaign, were donated to Bethany Christian Trust, a charitable organisation in Scotland whose mission is to relieve suffering and meet the long-term needs of homeless and vulnerable people in Scotland.
On receiving the items, Kevin, a staff member from Bethany Christian Trust, said: “I am grateful for the bags of love and kindness that have been donated by the students from Edinburgh College Midlothian campus.
“Bethany Christian Trust is full of gratitude for the commitment shown by the students in putting the bags together and the residents are absolutely going to love the items”.
The students also had an opportunity to learn first-hand about mental health and wellbeing. A local man who has lived experience of being homeless explained how he struggled with his mental health and discussed with the participants the support he received to recover from the challenges he faced. The students later sent wonderful messages of encouragement to him for his strength and ability to stay positive.
James,One of the Can Do participants, said: “What I liked most about the project was getting an opportunity to help and make someone smile”.
Jasmine Lapointe, Lecturer at Edinburgh College, applauded the students for choosing such a significant project which made a positive and tangible difference in people’s lives, and said they should all be proud for taking part.
Obert Dhundu, Leonard Cheshire’s Can Do Coordinator for Edinburgh, said “The students expressed a keen interest in embarking on a project that will be impactful not only for themselves but for vulnerable people in the community, and this led them to choose a project centred on homelessness.
“They showed great commitment in learning about homelessness, as well as the related topics we covered. It was a real privilege to have facilitated this project for them.”
Aldi Scotland has launched its ‘Not Socks Again?!’ campaign for the second year running, following its widespread success in 2021, which saw more than 2000 pairs of socks donated to good causes.
The initiative encourages customers to donate any unwanted or extra unused socks they may have received as Christmas gifts to charities supporting people in need across Scotland.
Every year, millions of people receive socks for Christmas that they often don’t want or need, charities across Scotland do, and Aldi’s ‘Not Socks Again?!’ campaign aims to put these gifts to better use by donating new and unused socks to those who need them most.
Aldi’s Sock Amnesty’ boxes will be in stores across Scotland from the 3rd of January until the end of the month, where people can drop off their unused socks to help keep vulnerable people warm this winter.
The Bethany Christian Trust are working toward the goal of ending homelessness in Scotland. The team at the Bethany Christian Trust offer a broad range of services, from assistance with housing, education and employment, to crisis intervention wellbeing support.
Nathanael Smith, Community Fundraiser, Bethany Christian Trust, said: “It’s surprising how much a good pair of socks can make a difference in someone’s life.
“It’s a simple gift that can mean warmth, comfort and dignity to those in need. Thanks to Aldi for making such an amazing project possible.”
Richard Holloway, Regional Managing Director for Scotland, said: “Following an immensely challenging year, the team at Aldi Scotland were eager to support charities which are working tirelessly to help those in need.
“In winter, charities are always looking for essential items to be donated, and so we thought, why not encourage our customers to donate any unwanted gifts of socks to people who truly need them.
Aldi will also contribute a £250 donation to each charity in the hope of helping the most vulnerable in our communities.
Aldi’s Sock Amnesty boxes will be in store from 3rd January and customers are invited to drop off any unwanted, new and unused, socks which will be donated to the charity in their local area.”
This initiative builds on Aldi’s commitment to supporting communities across Scotland. Since 2016, Aldi’s Scottish Sports Fund has supported over 500 local clubs with more than £290,000 worth of donations.
In addition, Aldi has helped to provide over 10 million meals to vulnerable people across the UK through its partnership with community engagement platform, Neighbourly. Aldi also helped 12 local foodbanks this year after it relaunched its popular Supermarket Sweep programme this year.
To find your nearest Aldi store please visit their website here and donate your unwanted socks this Christmas.
The city council and national homelessness charity Bethany Christian Trust announced the re-opening of the Welcome Centre earlier this week.
The Welcome Centre, which provides accommodation of last resort, tailored support and positive move on options for people who would otherwise be sleeping on the streets, opened on 4 October. It will operate until 2 May 2022 in the Haymarket Hub Hotel in Edinburgh’s West End.
Founded by Bethany Christian Trust in partnership with the Council, and supported by the Scottish Government, the Welcome Centre was pioneered last year in an emergency response to the outbreak of Covid-19, providing en-suite rooms as a deliberate move away from congregate shelter provision, and has since helped to establish a new model of tailored support for people rough sleeping.
Ahead of World Homeless Day (10 October), the Council’s Convener and Vice Convener for Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work, Councillor Kate Campbell and Councillor Mandy Watt, together with Bethany’s Chief Executive, Alasdair Bennett visited the Welcome Centre to meet some of the front-line staff from both the Council and Bethany Christian Trust that manage, work and volunteer at the facility and offer vital support for its service users.
The Welcome Centre takes an innovative and person centred approach, providing 24 hour tailored support for individuals all in one place. Guests receive their own en-suite room and 3 meals a day, including a hot evening meal prepared by volunteers.
Crucially, they are also able to work with dedicated staff and visiting professional services with support to access longer term accommodation as well as on site assistance with mental health, addiction, wellbeing, health needs and accessing benefits.
Councillor Kate Campbell, the Council’s Convener of Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work, said:“It’s been inspiring to meet staff at the Welcome Centre. Everyone is united in a strong desire to end rough sleeping and the Welcome Centre plays a crucial role. It’s somewhere that anyone who is at risk of rough sleeping can go and have a place to stay that night.
“But it can’t stop there. Which is why it’s been so good to see so many partners working together, from the third sector, health and social care and the council, to make sure that anyone who stays at the centre has support wrapped around them. From advice to health care and support to register as homeless.
“Bethany’s Welcome Centre has to be a first step on resolving people’s homelessness long term. And the warm welcome and support they are given here is vital to building trust and relationships that enable that journey to begin.”
Councillor Mandy Watt, the Council’s Vice Convener of Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work, said: “It’s been fantastic meeting everyone here at the Welcome Centre and seeing the vital work that they do. But on World Homelessness Day it’s important to say that our long term goal is to prevent homelessness in the first place.
“Which is why our Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan is not just focussed on how we resolve rough sleeping, or improving temporary accommodation, but on long term actions we can take.
“It’s crucial that we prevent homelessness by supporting people early on when they’re at risk of losing their home.
“Ultimately I think we all want to get to a place where there isn’t a need for the Welcome Centre, because we’re able to intervene to make sure that in the future no one faces being without a home or having to sleep on the streets.
Cameron Black, Director of Crisis Intervention, Bethany Christian Trust said:“People need genuine support when they are having the worst day of their lives and that is what they find at the Welcome Centre.
“The staff are there for people 24 hours a day to offer professional and real care. We are so grateful to the Edinburgh Collection Hotel’s accommodation and our partner agencies who go the extra mile to bring their expertise to where people are.
“All of the support from volunteers from the local churches and all who help fund this innovative project saves lives. We just couldn’t do it without you!”
Relying on the financial support of the general public, local churches, trusts, businesses, the City of Edinburgh Council and the Scottish Government, the Welcome Centre shows what can be possible when the people of Edinburgh come together to create change.
With a large professional staff team, over 1,000 Bethany volunteers and more than 20 visiting partner services, the Welcome Centre saw remarkable success in 2020 – 2021 in helping people recover from the crisis of homelessness and move on to a more stable situation.
The service accommodated and supported over 860 individuals who had fallen into homelessness because of a wide range of circumstances as well as those rough sleeping, with 97% of known outcomes positive.
Donations will support both charities work and services across Edinburgh.
Cyrenians and the Bethany Christian Trust have both received donations of £2500 from convenience store retailer, Scotmid, to help support homelessness across Edinburgh and the Lothians.
The charities received a £1500 cash donation as well as £1000 in Scotmid vouchers to help users of their accommodation services gain a sense of independence, as the vouchers will allow them to purchase items for themselves, from Scotmid stores.
Ewan Aitken, CEO at Cyrenians, said: “Thank you very much indeed to Scotmid. It is such a delight to talk with an organisation that is so open to ideas and understands intuitively the importance of dignity in how we support people.
“The vouchers will be a welcome addition to those who have been disproportionately affected by the impact of the pandemic. They will allow each person to hold on to dignity as they are able to choose food and toiletry items that meet their own preferences and needs.
“We are very grateful that Scotmid, like us, recognise the power of supporting individuals to make their own steps towards recovery and a positive life journey.”
Bethany Christian Trust will be using its vouchers to help men who are seeking to move on from a history of homelessness and addiction. The Bethany Christian Centre facilitates a safe and supportive space for individuals to grow in their recovery, helping them reach a place where they feel ready to move into permanent accommodation and sustain independent living for the future.
Alasdair Bennett, CEO at Bethany Christian Trust, said: “We are really grateful for the donation of £2,500 from Scotmid, which will go directly to supporting the men in the recovery project, contributing to the range of opportunities provided within this life saving service.”
Since April 2020, Bethany Christian Centre has accommodated and supported 26 different men who were seeking to improve their lives and opportunities.
Harry Cairney, Chairman of Scotmid, said: “Our stores focus on serving the local communities that they are located in and so it’s important for us to be able to support charities that work within those communities, improving people’s everyday lives.
“We are pleased to be able to make these donations to both Cyrenians and Bethany Christian Trust to aid the incredible work they do.”
Brian was a previous resident at Bethany Christian Centre and has now moved on to his own flat.
Brian said: “Before I arrived at Bethany Christian Centre, my life was very sad and I suffered with depression. I had really lost all hope. I constantly battled feelings of fear and insecurity, but instead of trying to get help I found an escape in drink and drugs and shut myself away from others.
“Although I’ve had periods of recovery from time to time, I never felt that I could see a way out and become totally free.
“I came to Bethany Christian Centre to get help for my addiction. I was lost and had no direction or hope. Coming to the Centre has helped me see myself differently; that I am fully loved and accepted. It hasn’t been an easy programme for me but without the help of the staff, I don’t think I would have made it.
“With their love I have found strength and confidence within me that I never thought I could have. Now, I have more to look forward to, and I’m excited to have moved on to my own flat. I thank God for the people he has put in my life and for the newfound love and security that I have.”
A new Welcome Centre has opened its doors for the winter season, providing warm food and sleeping facilities, immediate housing advice and wellbeing support to anyone facing rough sleeping.
Edinburgh co-ordinates support for rough sleepers this winter at new Rapid Re-accommodation Welcome Centre
Meals and a safe place to stay with social distancing in place
Multiple partner agencies working together to provide health, housing and advocacy support
Responding to the ongoing public health emergency with accommodation where social distancing and self-isolation can be practiced safely, the Welcome Centre shelter will provide up to 65 self-contained rooms every night until 3 May 2021.
It is being provided thanks to dedicated funding and support from the City of Edinburgh Council and the Scottish Government, plus anticipated charitable donations to Bethany Christian Trust including financial support from Social Bite.
A team of Council, public health, private and third sector workers will build on work which has taken place this year to tackle rough sleeping and move households from shared temporary accommodation like B&Bs into self-contained places to live. Edinburgh’s street-based outreach services, provided by StreetWork, will also help to identify individuals at risk during the colder months.
Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Convener Councillor Kate Campbell said: “Throughout this pandemic our priority has been making sure no one has to sleep rough and that we have good quality accommodation available for anyone who needs it.
“This means working together as a city and it’s welcome that the Council, the Scottish Government and third sector partners are doing just that. It’s emblematic of how we’ve been working since March, and shows how much we can achieve when we work together.
“The Welcome Centre is a place where urgent help can be provided immediately, but beyond that critical point, partners will be on hand to provide coordinated health and housing support and help people take steps to resolve their homelessness over the longer term.
“We know from the work we’ve done already that building trust immediately and taking services to people who need them, rather than asking them to come to us to ask for help, has a positive, lasting impact. It’s incredibly important in building relationships that are helping people to move on from rough sleeping.
“All steps are being taken to protect against Covid-19 and I want to pass my thanks to Bethany, the incredible efforts of our housing officers and our partners for working together on this.
“Just last month we put a five-year plan in place to further strengthen our support and we remain committed to doing all that we can to prevent and tackle homelessness. The lessons learned during the pandemic will be embedded long term so that we are taking every possible action to end rough sleeping in our city.”
Vice Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Convener Councillor Mandy Watt said: “We remain in a public health emergency so we need to take unprecedented steps to keep everyone as safe as we possibly can. We’re aiming to strengthen our support across all of our homelessness services and know this centre will be an important refuge for people who might otherwise sleep rough.
“A person facing a night on the streets during winter is already in a very vulnerable situation, but this is heightened by the pandemic. By opening this new welcome centre in an easily accessible venue where social distancing and self-isolation can more easily be practiced, we’re aiming to drastically reduce the risk of ill health to people in this position – and prevent the virus spreading throughout communities – at a time when the NHS will be under immense pressure.”
Edinburgh’s Bethany-run shelter ran from Church Halls last winter and the Old Waverley Hotel on Princes Street at the height of lockdown, benefitting 1,112 people. This year the centre will run from the Haymarket Hub Hotel located opposite Haymarket train station.
Alasdair Bennett, Chief Executive of Bethany Christian Trust, said: “We have a vision of ending homelessness in Scotland and over the years we have supported and prevented thousands of people from sleeping rough in Edinburgh with multi-agency support, health interventions, accommodation options and practical support, whilst also providing overnight shelter.
“The new Rapid Re-accommodation Welcome Centre will continue to rapidly re-accommodate people safely from the streets with multi-disciplinary interventions on-site, and we will still provide bed spaces for anyone that cannot access any alternative that night and for whom the Welcome Centre is a last resort.”
Scotland’s Housing Minister Kevin Stewart said: “I am clear that no one should be sleeping rough. Having the right support in place to ensure this isn’t the case is even more important during the harsher winter months and during the current pandemic.
“I am pleased we have been able to help fund this Rapid Rehousing Welcome Centre which provides accommodation and a support service, offering an important emergency safety net for anyone who finds themselves homeless.
“The pandemic has not changed our unwavering commitment to end homelessness, having allocated £32.5 million to support prioritising settled housing for all, and initiatives likes this are essential to protecting lives.”
Josh Littlejohn, Co-Founder of Social Bite, said: “Throughout the pandemic we’ve been committed to providing help and support to those who need it most and as we move into the winter months, it’s vital that this support continues, giving those who need it a warm, safe place to sleep at night.
“The Haymarket Hub allows ample space for social distancing measures to be followed and will be a huge support to the most vulnerable in our society as we all continue to navigate through these unsure and challenging times.
“We’re proud to have worked together with partner organisations to support this potentially life-saving project and help further tackle homelessness in the city.”
The Council’s Homelessness and Housing Support team is also available to help anyone in crisis on 0131 529 7125 (8.30am to 5.00pm Monday to Thursday and 8.30am to 3.40pm on Fridays).
Scottish Conservative MSPs have met with representatives from the Bethany Christian Trust to donate clothing, jackets, hats and gloves for distribution to those struggling with homelessness throughout the winter. Continue reading Scottish Tory MSPs donate clothes to Bethany
Bethany Christian Trust in Edinburgh has received £150,000 from the STV Children’s Appeal to boost financial support for Safe Families for Children, a community project running in Edinburgh and Glasgow.Continue reading STV Appeal supports Safe Families for Children
