AN anonymous donation of £25,000 has eased the money troubles of a vital Redditch charity for the homeless- for the time being.
Nightstop, in The Ecumenical Centre, on Evesham Walk, had been struggling since its five year National Lottery funding ended in 2012 but the kind-hearted gesture, just before Christmas, means its work with young people can continue.
Deputy manager Rebekah Bott, said: “There was a lot of jumping around the office when we got the donation – we were thrilled. It was a wonderful Christmas present.”
The team of just four people help 16 to 25-year-olds in and around Redditch who have found themselves at risk of sleeping rough.
However to carry on they still need to secure £40,000 in the next six months.
The charity offers emergency accommodation with local volunteer host families who offer a room for a night. They also organise long term placements for those in need and support those who manage to get their own home but struggle to cope with their new responsibilities.
Julie Hughes, homeless prevention officer, said: “If we weren’t here I don’t know what a lot of these young people would do. We help them with so many things from finding somewhere to sleep, managing their bills, setting up a new home, getting things together for new parents to mediating between them and their family.
“We are stepping in where there has been family breakdowns or breakdowns in relationships. We would like to think that once our children leave home they have some clean bedding, their kitchen is stocked and they have the basic things they need.
“Instead youngsters come to us in circumstances where there has been no planned move. A family breakdown may have resulted in them being kicked out, someone may have died or they may have drug issues.”
With funding becoming more scarce in the last few years the group has had to scale down its operation despite the need more than tripling in the last 12 months.
Last year they organised 415 overnight stays for youngsters compared to just 129 in the previous year.
Nightstop received £1,500 from Worcestershire County Council to go toward their work along with £13,000 from Redditch Borough Council while Redditch United fans recently raised £80 at a match.
Nightstop figures show if a young person is on the streets it only takes seven hours for them to be approached with drugs, sex or other criminal activities. Once they have been homeless for three weeks the chances of them getting back into a stable home environment are very slim.
To volunteer for Nightstop contact Susan Sadlerby emailing [email protected] or call 01527 66036.
