These past two months have been really busy at Crisis Skylight Birmingham.
#HealthNow
#HealthNow is a UK wide campaign, working towards an inclusive health system where everyone has access to the health care they need; ultimately moving people out of homelessness. Health creates a foundation for moving out of homelessness. #HealthNow is led by Groundswell and delivered in partnership with national charities Crisis and Shelter.
People experiencing homelessness can find it difficult to access and make use of healthcare.
#HealthNow have recruited and trained a team of researchers, all with a lived experience of homelessness, to listen to others' experiences of accessing health services. By doing so we hope to re-shape healthcare services for people experiencing homelessness.
Our Volunteer Peer Researchers are preparing for the next round of research looking into the health inequalities faced by people who are homeless.
They will be looking particularly at the restrictions, guidance, testing, tracing etc to do with the Coronavirus. The impracticalities of trying to self isolate or shield in a hostel setting, access to advice and guidance, how to register for a test kit with no fixed abode etc.
Black History Month
During the month of October, Crisis Skylight Birmingham marked Black History Month with our members in the Member Forum, the Power Up group and the LGBTQ+ group.
At the member forum we were delighted to welcome Musician and Designer, C4, who joined us for some questions and to perform for us.
Crisis @ Christmas - Volunteering
Volunteering roles for Crisis at Christmas went live in October and the applications have been steadily flowing in.
Crisis at Christmas is a unique volunteer effort that provides immediate help for our Members (those who are, or at risk of becoming, homeless) at a critical time of year. By volunteering with Birmingham's Crisis this Christmas you can make a real difference to people experiencing homelessness in Birmingham.
We have a range of Christmas events over December and into early January and will need a range of volunteers over this time, including kitchen staff, drivers, entertainers and key service providers.
At Crisis we value diversity, promote equality, and challenge discrimination, and we encourage and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds.
If you would like to find out more and apply for one of the many volunteering roles available, check out the information on our website via this link
Crisis @ Christmas - Donations
In addition to the volunteering applications flowing in, we have also had lots of lovely donations arriving.
Due to the Coronavirus outbreak, there will be significant changes to the way in which we deliver services and support our members this Christmas.
Sadly, we won’t be able to celebrate together or sit down for Christmas dinner as we have done before.
Instead we will be bringing Christmas Dinner to our members across the city and delivering gift bags, food hampers, well being items etc on Christmas day.
We would love our supporters help to make this happen either by buying an item on our Amazon Wishlist or by emailing the team at birmingham.donations@crisis.org.uk to let us know what you would like to donate and to sort out the logistics of getting the items to our members.