St Martin's News
NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 | PAGE 2 | ACCEPTING THE CHALLENGE

Contacting rough sleepers, providing solutions
The Trust’s Rough Sleepers team - known as the CAPS (Contact, Assessment and Prevention Service) – is based in Upper Goat Lane.

 The team continue to provide a range of services to rough sleepers and vulnerably housed people.  They work very closely with the Housing Options team in Norwich City Council and with similar teams in the housing departments of South Norfolk Council and Broadland Council.

The principle aim of the team is to engage with rough sleepers as early as possible to avoid crisis rough sleeping.  This involves assessing and tracking everybody who arrives on the street in Norwich with a view to moving them off the streets and into appropriate accommodation.

 Street sleeping numbers in Norwich have been kept to very low single figures throughout the year.  However the statistics do not take into account those people who have no permanent accommodation of their own and rely on friends to have a roof over their head.

Simon Brandish (left), Tim Ward and Kendal Freeman have recently been joined by Caroline Armitage.  Caroline has joined the Trust from St. Mungos in London.  St. Mungos is one of the main homelessness agencies in the capital.

Champagne fund raising with Lulu 
 The Trust is very grateful to local concert promoter Chris Bailey for allowing us to organise a champagne raffle at the concert starring Lulu and the Jools Holland Orchestra at Somerleyton Hall on 10th August.   Over £3,000 was raised by company secretary Tracy Yates (from Eversheds solicitors in Cathedral Close) and her team of helpers including long-time supporters of the Trust Mr. and Mrs. Bartlett from Old Buckingham.

The wine flowed, the sun shone and Lulu could be heard in Great Yarmouth (allegedly).

100th person receives flat keys to a Norwich City Council tenancy
 Jon Doughty, Group Homes
Co-ordinator, writes…. 

The Trust manages a number of “Group Homes” for people who are not quite ready for independent tenancies after a period of homelessness.  Most people move on from these group homes to a tenancy with the largest social housing provider in the city – Norwich City Council.  Alex  became the 100th person from the project to accept a council tenancy in this way during August. 

Apart from maintaining our own group homes and securing the support of the County Council’s Supporting People commissioners to provide the service, there are many, many tasks involved in helping people set up home by themselves in a new tenancy.  They include sorting out the gas and electricity, making sure Housing Benefit can cover the rent, getting some basic furnishings and kitchen equipment into the flat and generally keeping in touch. 

So Alex is an important statistic.  More than that he, and all the ninety-nine other “Alex’s” have their own unique story to tell.

Wensum Lodge donation

The Trust would like to acknowledge the generous donation of a large quantity of freshly laundered sheets, towels and pillow cases from Norfolk County Council’s Adult Education Service based at Wensum Lodge in King Street, Norwich. 

Wensum Lodge Premises Manager Linda Bammant explained: “Now that we no longer offer student accommodation for short courses at Wensum Lodge we had no use for a large quantity of bed linen.  We are very pleased that St. Martins is able to use it at their care homes and hostels for their residents.” 

Head of Operations John Hales said: “This was a generous donation by Adult Education that will save the Trust a great deal of money.  The bed linen was equally divided between St. Martins House (22 beds), Carrow Hill House (19 beds)  and Bishopbridge House (30 beds)”.