Glass Door Homeless Charity

Here’s our latest roundup of news relevant to our work that we think should be on your radar. Find out about: 🔎repercussions from the government’s Rwanda Act 🔎the latest stats on children in temporary accommodation 🔎the current state of the Renters Reform Bill 🔎the underrepresentation of women in official rough sleeping statistics https://bit.ly/4bvujXr https://bit.ly/3wqKGpw https://bit.ly/3WxYjh4 https://bit.ly/4b0IPXr

Part of what motivates and drives our influencing & advocacy work is the insight and data we collect from the frontline. We use this information to influence policy, work in-partnership to raise awareness of these issues and encourage positive change across the sector and in society. Over the last year, both in our shelters and across our casework services, we’ve seen worrying trends of an increased demand for support of specific demographics and experiences. The trend of rising homelessness among women has been visible for a few years and was a major factor in why we ran a women's shelter for the first time this winter. Increased numbers of under-35s coming to us for support is another ongoing concern, while homelessness among refugees spiked towards the end of 2023 due to the Home Office speeding up evictions from asylum accommodation following refugee status. Despite these discouraging trends across our services, our colleagues work hard to support guests into more stable accommodation. From our night shelter service, our casework colleagues supported 113 shelter guests into more permanent housing. Of the 113 guests: ➡️ 60 are women ➡️ 54 are refugees ➡️ 49 are under the age of 35 Whilst our shelter season has come to a close, our caseworkers work year-round and continue to support shelter guests in finding a route out of homelessness.

The 2023 Women’s Rough Sleeping Census report was officially launched today, finding that women could be as much as nine times under-counted in official rough sleeping stats. Building on the 2022 census, which was the first of its kind, it aims to improve our understanding of women experiencing homelessness so that services can help them more effectively. The 2022 census was focused on London, and received responses from 154 women; the 2023 census expanded to 41 local authorities across England, and received responses from 815 women. The census was led by Solace, Single Homeless Project, the GLA and London Councils. Its findings highlight the importance of a gender-informed approach and contain important insights that can help homelessness services, local authorities and the government to support people out of homelessness and eradicate rough sleeping in all of its forms. You can read the full report here: https://lnkd.in/eFSCVMQw

Our CEO, Jo Carter, spoke to the Big Issue following the release of figures showing a 33% increase in rough sleeping in London. Jo spoke about what these worrying figures mean, our experience running night shelters over the winter, and what needs to be done to address the housing crisis. You can read her full comments here: https://lnkd.in/eS8tR8Bq

Matched giving has now closed! A huge thank you to Giveclarity.org Ltd for providing matched giving for our Spring Appeal 💜 Their generosity, along with that of everyone who has donated so far, will help us support those affected by homelessness. There is still time to support our appeal, so please consider donating; your gift could help ensure someone has the chance to homelessness behind and find a safe, secure place to call home. https://lnkd.in/em5e-Pgb

The London Mayoral election is today (Thursday 2nd May). Make sure to go to your local polling station and use your vote! We think that housing and homelessness should be a top priority for whoever wins the election, and we encourage everyone to research all the candidates’ stances. You can find out more about who is standing and what they stand for here: https://lnkd.in/e-9JdbQG

Earlier today, the latest figures on rough sleeping in London came out from the Greater London Authority's Combined Homelessness and Information Network (CHAIN). These showed that between January and March 2024, outreach teams saw 4118 people sleeping rough, a 33% increase compared to the same period last year. Head to our website to read what our CEO, Jo Carter, had to say about this worrying increase: https://lnkd.in/e7-5_aKM

🌟 Join the Glass Door team! 🌟 We're recruiting for two roles at Glass Door: ➡️ Chair of Trustees (voluntary) ➡️ Receptionist Find out more about both roles and apply at glassdoor.org.uk/jobs

Following a relationship breakdown, months of sofa surfing and eventually exhausting all her options, Hellen ended up with no choice but to sleep on the streets. When a friend told her about Glass Door, she came to one of our day centres, where she met Caroline, a Glass Door caseworker. "Caroline registered me at the women’s emergency night shelter... if it wasn’t for the night shelters, I would have been sleeping on the street again. For two months, I stayed at the women’s night shelter. During the day, I continued working as a cleaner and, in the evening, I would go the shelter, where I would receive a warm welcome, a hearty meal and a safe place to sleep. The food was very good every night and the volunteers and staff were so kind. They would take the time to comfort me when I was having a bad day. I met a lot of friends at the women’s night shelter and I’m still in contact with some of them." By supporting our Spring Appeal, you can help us run this vital service which gives people a warm, safe place to stay during the coldest months of the year. Please consider donating this spring to help people like Hellen at glassdoor.org.uk/donate 💜

Congratulations John Aglionby who ran his first ever marathon on Sunday! John has previously volunteered in our night shelters and taken part in Glass Door's Sleep Out, and this year decided to take on an exciting challenge and run the London Marathon for Glass Door, raising an amazing £5,907 for us - go John!!! If you're feeling inspired to raise funds for us while doing something fun and challenging, check out our Challenge Events at glassdoor.org.uk/events