Paula Hall, the CEO of the Purfleet Trust, will talk to a Churches Together audience about the Purfleet Trust and how they are helping to meet the needs of the homeless in the local community.
The Purfleet Trust was set up as a charity in 1993 to provide help for single homeless people in King’s Lynn and West Norfolk. Its services now include housing advice to help people find accommodation, support to help them maintain their tenancies, and a Pathways Centre providing a daily hot meal and the opportunity to gain some essential life skills. The centre can also be used as a postal address and there is free access to both computers and the telephone
The organisation relies on charitable donations, including charitable trusts, Crisis, Local Authority, Big Lottery as well as generous donations from the local community.
The Purfleet Trust have also been working in partnership with Freebridge Community Housing establishing pathways training houses for single homeless people with low to medium but intensive support needs
These training houses are provided by Freebridge and managed on their behalf by The Purfleet Trust. They provide accommodation and support to homeless, or potentially homeless, single people who want to make changes in their lives. The project has been designed to prepare people for living in self-contained or shared accommodation of their own in the future.
The tenants have their own bedroom and the use of a shared bathroom, a fully equipped kitchen and a reception room. Every tenant has a key worker who will provide and co-ordinate advice and practical support with establishing good budgeting practices, gaining household skills, engaging in meaningful activities and training, aimed at working towards employment as well as developing the long term ability to sustain an independent tenancy.
The project is a combination of structured support to encourage engagement and good quality, suitable, fully furnished temporary accommodation that demonstrates to the individual that they are valued. Tenants are helped to move on to more permanent accommodation options when they have gained the skills and confidence and demonstrated their reliability to take on their own tenancies.
The Pathways Centre provides comprehensive day care and move on support to vulnerable and homeless people in West Norfolk.
Based in the heart of the Purfleet Trust at St Ann’s Fort, King’s Lynn the centre offers respite to people who are street homeless and those who feel vulnerable and excluded in our community and provides access to showers and laundry facilities, a hot meal and someone to listen.
The centre is the hub of the organisation and is the first point of contact for a person needing support. It is a friendly welcoming place where any help needed will be available and the trust will help people access services that they are unable to provide.
The talk will take place on Wednesday November 11 at 7.30pm at the London Rd Methodist Church in King’s Lynn.
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