Vital funding and partnership secured to provide essentials

The ongoing impact of the cost of living crisis is being keenly felt, particularly by people affected by homelessness. As a result of the crisis we are seeing more and more people approaching us for help. In addition to seeking a safe and secure place to live, our service users are also finding themselves unable to access extremely basic necessities during an incredibly difficult time in their lives. The common thread that runs through all of the help and support that Action Homeless provides is the goal to break the cycle of homelessness. When people are struggling to afford basic hygiene and household products, whether this is when they first encounter our services or when they are moving on to more independent living situations, it makes breaking this cycle more difficult.

This is why we are so pleased to announce our involvement as a charitable partner with The Hygiene Bank in Lutterworth, as well as the news that we have successfully received a grant of £8,376 from the Leicestershire and Rutland Community Foundation’s ‘Making Local Life Better’ fund to provide people with the essentials they need. Our partnership with The Hygiene Bank in Lutterworth will provide us with an ongoing supply of donated products to help tackle hygiene poverty, and the grant money from the Leicestershire and Rutland Community Foundation will be used to provide kitchen starter packs for people moving from temporary and emergency accommodation and into their own homes.

Increasingly people aren’t getting the essentials when they move in to a new property due to the rising costs of everything else required when moving. Client feedback has told us that the move to a more secure home can be a very isolating time, and that the pressures of setting up a home amidst the backdrop of a cost of living crisis and following a period of homelessness can be extreme. We want to give people the best possible chance of making a success of their new home and avoiding repeat instances of homelessness.  The kitchen starter packs will include pots, pans, chopping boards, oven trays, Tupperware and cooking utensils, as well as supporting existing partnerships to get white goods and towels and bedding when necessary. These essentials will go a long way to help people settle in to their new homes, and support their ongoing independence.

More and more people are living with hygiene poverty, and the cost of living crisis is worsening the situation. Our new charitable partnership with The Hygiene Bank in Lutterworth will provide us with a regular supply of essential hygiene products. The Hygiene bank take donations of all hygiene products, including household, personal and laundry. We are able to provide The Hygiene Bank with a wish list for each collection, and so we are able to request the kinds of products most vitally needed by our service users at the time. Along with essential products such as shampoo, shower gel and sanitary items, we have also received donations of makeup and pamper sets. These are equally important to us, as we want to provide our service users not only with basic products but also those that provide self-care. In addition to being distributed around our various services, the products from The Hygiene Bank have been set up in a Hygiene Pantry at our newly refurbished Engage Wellbeing Hub. Displayed in practical but aesthetically pleasing storage, our service users are now able to browse in the pantry and take home products of their choice.