During the festive season it’s not uncommon for people to feel the urge to give something back. More often than not, this manifests itself in the form of helping the homeless over Christmas. Whilst it is a noble gesture for sure, a recent article by Derek Mace, Operations Director at Coastline Housing’s homelessness service has highlighted the problems with fairweather volunteers in his Guardian piece.
The organisation he works for have had to turn away the bulk of volunteers who have put themselves forward to help out for a few days over Christmas. One key reason for the large number of rejections is the costs in training and screening volunteers who only intend to be involved for an extremely short period. Whilst they appreciate the effort being made, this cost of training would actually be detrimental to the services they offer.
Another reason they turn away people is the reasoning behind their wanting to volunteer. Many times it isn’t out of empathy for the homeless, but sympathy for the homeless. When it is the latter, the real person benefitting from the gesture is the volunteer. They get the feelgood factor as reward for what they’ve done. It’s this ‘feeling good’ that people yearn, especially over the Christmas period that can actually be harmful to the homeless. The reason being that for the other 364 or so days of the year, they become the forgotten problem. They become invisible.
At his day centre, they help 1,000 people a month, their crisis accommodation is full all year round and their 40, two-year temporary accommodation always has a waiting list. This highlights the fact that helping the homeless is an all year round thing.
But that’s not to say you can’t do anything to help. Not by a long shot. There are plenty of schemes and services you can contribute your time or money to to help those less fortunate. Below we have listed 5 ways you can help the homeless all year round…. Including Christmas.
The Big Change
Both politicians and homeless charities alike agree that giving change to the homeless isn’t always helpful. As the donator, you have no idea where that money is going to be spent. It could go on drugs or alcohol or be getting collected by begging gangs to fund trafficking and organised crime. The Big Change fund supports individuals who are homeless by paying for items they need – a deposit for a home, a training course, clothes for a job interview, furnishing for a new flat, or travel costs. Big Change has already raised over £110,000 and helped over 400 individuals and you can help too by donating directly to a charity that helps the homeless.
More information about the Big Change can be found here.
Suspend a Coffee
Similar to the pay it forward movement but designed more towards helping the homeless specifically. There are several coffee houses in Manchester that participate in the scheme and the premise is simple. When buying yourself a coffee, you can purchase another one that will be given to a homeless person should they come in and ask. This is a great way, especially over the winter months, to help give someone a little extra warmth.
This scheme operates worldwide however a list of participating stores in Manchester can be found here
Street Link
Street Link is a government-funded service which allows people to alert local authorities in England and Wales about rough sleepers in need of support in their area. You can pick up the phone or use Street Link’s website or app to enter details of the location, time and date you saw the person and any other information you have. The service will contact professionals who will try to find them and help them access things like shelter and food.
More information about Street Link can be found here.
Volunteering
I know we have just mentioned how volunteering for a few days doesn’t really help charities but being able to give time more regularly, perhaps once a week or once a month, can make a huge difference. National charities like Crisis and Shelter detail all their volunteering opportunities on their websites or keep it local by contacting your nearest homeless charity or shelter to ask what sort of help they need.
A number of Manchester based charities can be found here.
Treat Them Like a Human Being.
One of the most devastating things for homeless people is the inhumanity of not even being acknowledged. It’s understandable that not everyone would know how to begin talking to a homeless person. Some people choose to shy away because speaking to a homeless person brings them closer to the reality of the situation, which makes them uncomfortable.
Whatever the reasons for avoiding conversing with a homeless person, it’s ten times worse for the person being ignored. It’s degrading and makes them feel worthless, not to mention the effect it will have on their mental health. We’re not saying you need to sit down for hours and hear their life story. Just simply giving them a nod or a hello will suffice. It’s simply a case of helping make them feel human again.
