BCHA’s Winter Watch scheme, which ran from 24th November to 20th February, has once again proved a huge success, helping 99 vulnerable people shelter from the bitter cold temperatures, rain and snow this winter.
The Winter Watch scheme is run by local charity BCHA, with help from Faithworks Wessex. The scheme, which is run from the Day Centre of 10, St Pauls in the centre of Bournemouth, created an additional 10 bed spaces per night. This meant a total of 50 homeless people could shelter in the nightshelter each night, away from the freezing winter temperatures.
Nathanial Major, Manager of St Pauls, commented: “BCHA are pleased to have helped 99 people survive the cold through our Winter Watch scheme. We would like to thank everyone involved in Winter Watch, who helped make the scheme such a success.
“The service would not be able to continue without the dedicated people who give up their time to help others. In particular we would like to thank the volunteers, including those from Faithworks Wessex and BCHA, who made the day centre in to bedrooms, made the beds each day, heated and served the meals and were there to make people comfortable in their stay. We would also like to thank the generous members of the public who donated essential items such as warm clothing and food.”
This winter, additional staff from BCHA have been involved in the scheme, helping service users to work through some of the issues they have such as substance misuse or mental health issues. BCHA will continue to work through these with the individuals, to try and help them find a more permanent solution to their problems and to help them access the right methods to find a way forward with their life.