Together

It’s a privilege to introduce our latest issue of Together, the online magazine produced for Crisis supporters like you.

This issue will bring you stories and updates from across our services, to show how we are all working together to end homelessness. Thank you to my Crisis colleagues, our volunteers, and most of all, our members - the people with experience of homelessness - who bravely shared their stories for you to read.

If you have a few minutes please complete the survey at the end; we’d love to hear what you think of the magazine.

People were more reliant on our services than ever before, so thank you for being there by helping us to provide the life-changing support and services featured in this magazine. From all of us at Crisis, thank you. We couldn’t do any of this without you.

Éimear, Editor

Angels we have heard on high
Sweetly singing over the plains
And the mountains in reply,
Echoing their joyous strains.

At our carol services throughout December, the air was filled with the glorious sound of our choirs; each one made up of people who have experienced homelessness.

In Edinburgh, Newcastle, Merseyside, Birmingham, Oxford, Swansea, and London, our carol services provided a unique opportunity to reflect on all we have achieved over the year with your help and hear from some of the people who have lived experience of homelessness.

One of them was King, an asylum seeker from Asia. At Newcastle Cathedral on 7th December, King shared her experiences through a very moving speech and poem. You can read some of the verses when you scroll down to the section: King of the world.

Thanks to you, Crisis at Christmas helped people build a life beyond homelessness. 

Over the Christmas period, incredible supporters like you helped us deliver services from our Skylight Centres across Britain, making last Christmas special at a time of desperate need for thousands of people throughout our country. 

Quite simply, your support meant that we were able to help thousands of people who had nowhere else to turn, making a huge difference to their physical and mental health at Christmas – and for the rest of their lives. 

Crisis have provided an awful lot of help, from understanding, love, compassion, to food vouchers, telephones, to getting me housed and have allowed me to be me and recover.

George, Member, Crisis Skylight Oxford

Ewan already has a day job running event catering at Edinburgh University. It’s enough to keep anyone busy, but he also volunteers as Head Chef for Crisis at Christmas. Here, he tells us a bit about his work.

“Generally, chefs want to look after people. We’re here for the members. Even if it’s just a bacon roll, it’s the fact that someone’s made that for them, it’s a huge thing.

Everyone knows someone who’s been in a bad situation. I came close to being homeless once. It didn’t happen because somebody let me stay in their house. Then I got back on my feet. I always said if I could give something back, I would.

When I joined, we relied on food donations. But there was no wish list. When I took over, I was like, let’s actually write a menu, so then we could go to people to say, ‘can we have 80 kilos of turkey please?’ and that’s what we did.

People are fed all day, that’s the idea. They are in the centre, they’re warm, they’re dry and there’s food, so we just keep going.”

Together we can campaign for change 

Housing benefit helps millions of people keep the foundation of a safe, decent home by helping them pay their rent. However, in 2020, housing benefit was frozen by the UK Government. It should cover the cheapest third of private rents in an area, but as rents sky-rocketed, a growing number of people experienced a shortfall between their housing benefit and the cost of their rent. 

Thanks to supporters like you joining us in campaigning for an increase, the Chancellor promised in his Autumn statement to increase Universal Credit to again cover the cheapest third of private rents, starting in April. 

When we work together we know we can get the lasting changes needed to end homelessness. 

Looking ahead to the next UK General Election, we must ensure all Westminster parties sustain this investment and commit to ending all forms of homelessness in their election manifestos. 

Join our Make History campaign

Sharon is a Critical Time Intervention Lead Worker in Merseyside, which means she helps people facing imminent homelessness – including prison leavers like John (featured below).

“I work with people who are nearing release from prison or are in approved premises, like a hostel. They usually only have 12 weeks to secure new accommodation, so we need to help them find somewhere suitable to live, fast.

The biggest challenge is the lack of affordable housing. So we often work alongside someone to help improve their income, either by maximising benefits or getting a job. For example, if they want to become a labourer, we may help them onto a course.

I recently finished working with John, who was able to get a private tenancy quite quickly. But our work didn’t end there, as John had lost contact with his son and was unable to return to his job as a carer.

John’s crime was alcohol-related, so he started with AA. Over the months, his mental health improved and we explored what he could do for work. He enjoyed gardening, so we found a community gardening course for him. After that, he got a part time volunteering job and is now looking to start his own business. He’s also going through the court system to re-establish contact with his son."

Read more about John's story

King is an asylum seeker living in Newcastle, who is building a life beyond homelessness and overcoming immense trauma.

While waiting to be granted asylum, people like King have no access to public funds and are unable to work, often trapping them in homelessness.

With the help of Crisis Lead Worker Emma, King worked to improve her mental health, and gained confidence through poetry and art. Crisis will always support people who find it difficult to access or are excluded from services.

King’s painting will be exhibited at the Clarendon Fine Art Gallery in Newcastle, as part of a fundraiser for Crisis.

Read King's poem