Happy Christmas and Review of 2021

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and good health and special times for the New Year.

It has been a busy year for Renewed Hope and we thank you for all your support. A lot has been achieved and we couldn’t have done it without you.

Here is a summary of our highlights for 2021.

Drop-In – a year in numbers

• Guests supported – 196 guests, including 54 homeless people and 10 refugees
• Number of sessions – 357
• Total guest visits in Drop-In – 3,692 visits
• Visiting agencies – ESRA, ESOS, Surrey County Council, Parashoot, i-access, Surrey Care Trust, Raven Housing, Therapy Dogs
• New activities include hairdresser visits, Drop-In choir, monthly guest feedback forum, laptop loans, employment workshops
• Covid vaccination clinics – 5
• Covid testing demonstration – 1

Staff team development

Staff team: Andrew Tyers, Anna Coe, Samuel John and Yvonne Dover

• In May we appointed our first Support Worker, Sam John. This has meant we’ve been able to give our guests more consistent support and it has freed up Anna and Yvonne to their roles. Sam’s contribution to the charity has strengthened and broadened our relationships with partners and has been more effectively able to follow up on referrals and link guests with the right agency for their needs.
• In July, we appointed Andrew Tyers as Fundraising Co-ordinator to replace Mary-Anne who moved on in the Spring. As well as extensive fundraising experience, Andrew has worked in charity housing management which is coming in very useful for our latest project – Hope House. One of his first grant successes was getting around £20,000 of the Government’s Homeless Winter Transformation Fund, which is helping us offer a longer-term solution to local homelessness, Hope House – see below.

Training

• In the autumn Anna and Sam gained Level 2 Qualifications in Self Harm and Suicide Awareness and Prevention.
• Andrew, Anna and Sam have been trained in Trauma Informed Care. We aim for all our support of guests to take this approach acknowledging everyone is different and therefore each guest needs an individualised approach to their support.
• All staff and three mentor volunteers have been trained in Outcomes Star, an online tool which will enable guests to see how much progress they have made through their struggles since first coming to us.

Service developments

Hope House

This week we got the keys to Hope House, a property in Redhill where we will house 4 homeless men!
We will work with them to get ready for permanent accommodation and help them work on their individual challenges, such as mental illness, addiction or unemployment. This is a long term project which has been an ambition of Renewed Hope for years and it will mean we can make a much bigger difference to people’s lives.
We hope for it to be open in January 2022.

Winter evening meals

Covid has once again put a hold on Winter Night Shelter, but this winter we are offering evening meals to homeless people and those who find evenings a real struggle mentally. Please get in touch if you know someone who might benefit from this service on info@renewedhope.org.uk