Recent updates
The latest news from our projects
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Thank you and Merry Christmas!
An update for Safer off the Streets - Help Bristol's homeless night shelters
Dec 22 2016
From all of us at Safer off the Streets, we want to say thank you so much for all of your support so far. Your donations and campaign shares have taken us a long way already - following a cheque received today, we can confirm we have now raised more than a quarter of our £100,000 target! Thank you, your support has a direct impact to get people safe off the streets.
Whilst there may be two sides to Bristol you can feel proud to be on the one ensuring fewer people have to sleep rough in our city. Please give the campaign an extra boost by sharing our campaign films on Facebook and Twitter - "Safer off the Streets" or "Two sides".
Caring at Christmas update
This afternoon we are busy setting up to receive our guests over the Christmas weekend. With the help of our volunteers, who give up their time to provide a warm welcome to everyone, there is a real buzz about the place. It can be a very difficult time of year for many people and at the shelters we try and make it as warm and welcoming for all who stay with us.
Wishing you all a peaceful and wonderful weekend and for those celebrating, a very happy Christmas.
Shelter off the Streets
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HELP REFUGEES - Greece Shelter project final 2016 report
An update for Help Refugees - #holidaysforgood - shelter campaign
Dec 22 2016
Hi All
It’s been a while since my last report that I sent out, after we had finished the fundraising campaign. As a quick reminder, in this last report, I explained that given the current situation and needs across what is undoutedly a globally connected problem, we had decided to shift the focus of our response to the refugee crisis, from France and Dunkirk, to Greece.
This decision was made in consultation with a number of people; those on the ground, those really informed as to what is going on, and Help Refugees, our charity partner.
Please find to follow a report on how we've spent the money we raised with you, and the impact it has had.
Project Aims and Objectives
The aim of the project was to provide shade and community spaces for refugees living in military camps in Greece. The initial projected output of the project was an increase in access to shade and respite from the hot sun, as well as access to spaces for communities to gather and conduct activities. Thanks to the creativity and agilty of our partner, Help Refugees we have been able to adapt to the ever-changing situation of the crisis and achieve more than
the initially planned outcomes.As well as constructing shade structures, the funding has also allowed us to build wooden floors for tents to protect families from cold floors, and produce upcycled wood burning stoves to provide heat and a way to cook food.
The project aimed to address the problem of refugee camps in northern Greece having no protection from extreme weather. The isolated camps leave refugees vulnerable to intense, searing sun in the summer and sub-zero degrees in the winter. This project has successfully met its aims to protect refugees from adverse weather conditions through the construction of shaded outdoor spaces, floors and stoves.
Shade
Help Refugees initially proposed to build four shaded structures in camps in northern Greece using the funds that we raised. In the summer months shade was identified as one of the greatest needs in the refugee camps. Three shade structures have been built in SK Market – Kalochori, Softex and Vasilika
camps in Thessaloniki. These spaces have been developed by the community and have transformed from simple shaded areas to become a Child Friendly Space (Softex), a school (Kalochori) and a community space for meetings and get-togethers (Vasilika).
The impact of these structures has been significant for communities living in the three camps.Shaded areas = 3
Wooden Flooring
Once three shade structures had been built in northern Greece, the volunteer construction team reassessed the needs in the camps to ensure that Sawday's funding was being spent as effectively as possible. They identified a huge need for wooden flooring. Families living in camps around Thessaloniki are mostly housed in tents inside large, vacuous abandoned warehouses. The concrete is extremely cold and families report that it is extremely difficult to sleep. Working with refugee carpenters, the construction team have fully installed wooden floors in two camps - Frakaport and SK Market – Kalachori. The team built approximately 15 floors a day in the Help Refugees warehouse. They limited installation of floors to 16 a day in camps, always finishing work at 3pm to allow families to set up their tents again before dark.
Kalachori camp = 86 tent floors (4m x 4m = 1,376 sqm)
Frakaport camp = 120 tent floors (4m x 4m = 1,920sqm)
Wood Burning Stoves
As well as providing flooring for tents, the team on the ground identified the need for providing a source of heat and way to cook. Most stoves are prohibited in camps by the Greek authorities however our team designed a safe, upcycled stove that was deemed appropriate for distribution by both the Ministry of Migration and the Greek military. The stoves are made using recycled car tire rims welded together. They produce a significant amount of heat and can also act as a stove for pots sat on top. This simple yet highly effective design is practically cost-free, the only expenditure being the welding and construction materials that were purchased using Sawday's funds.
Monitoring and Evaluation
In total, 3,300 people have had access to shaded spaces thanks to Sawdays funding. The construction of shade structures in the three camps have correlated with a decrease in community tensions and violence. Conversations with refugees living in these camps suggest that having a space outside of their tents provides a safe arena for productive activities, particularly for children. During the summer months, the shade structures also significantly reduced the number of children affected by severe sun burn. Prior to the shaded areas, all activities for children took place outside leaving them vulnerable to the sun. Mothers in the camps report a reduction in infections from sun burn in their children. The shade structures have acted as a flexible space allowing the community to adapt them to their needs. As the seasons changed, the spaces became extremely useful for communities to seek refuge from the rain and snow. They are now used as places to eat and also a space to dry their clothes.
824 people are now living in tents with flooring. The flooring installed in two camps has made a huge impact on their lives. Discussions with families have revealed that their children are now able to sleep. Our distribution teams have also noted a reduction inrequests for blankets and sleeping bags.
25 wood burning stoves have been distributed to refugee families. After distribution, refugees have told us that they feel a huge difference in their quality of life. Not only can they keep their families warm, but they can also cook food for themselves. We have adapted our Food Programme to include dry food so that families who have the stoves are able to use the ingredients to cook.
I think it’s fair to say that the world feels very fragile right now. There’s unforgivable suffering and poverty, wars raging and the gap in opportunity, as well as basic human rights, seems to be widening at an alarming rate.
Whilst others encourage thoughts of walls and borders, we need to work harder, with our owners and our wider community of guests, to make a difference to those far less fortunate than ourselves. Even if we can only help a few people, to make their lives a little bit better, then we believe that that’s our responsibility to do so.
Next year, we will continue to do our little bit, to make the most of the opportunity we have, to help. And to show others that businesses and communities like ours, have the potential to be a force for good. To do much more than just make a profit..
In 2017 we will allocate 5% of our 2016 profits to charity; supporting great projects and causes on an international, national, and local level.
From everyone at Sawday’s and Canopy & Stars and all of our owners, we would like to thank you all once more, for making this possible. We simply couldn’t have done it without your support and donations.
Best wishes
Tom Dixon
Managing Director
Sawday's Canopy & Stars -
We have sneaked past £20k - thank you
An update for Safer off the Streets - Help Bristol's homeless night shelters
Dec 19 2016
~~Over the weekend we have sneaked past the £20k benchmark and we are delighted to tell you we are approaching £22,000. Thank you Bristol and the wider community, your generosity and compassion is going to directly help people off the streets and into somewhere warm and safe.
Once we reach £25,500 we will have enough to cover the average cost of the whole Bristol night shelter programme for three weeks. That’s all down to your amazing support.
If you have viewed our film, Shelter off the Streets , you will have heard Ed Reed from Caring in Bristol talk about homelessness. He said: “Despite all of the hard work we are doing it’s still not enough. We need to try and do more. It’s too big for one person to deal with but it’s not too big for everyone in Bristol to deal with.”
Your donation helps to make a direct change. A night shelter is the beginning of longer term support from frontline staff and volunteers who really help people make a life away from the streets.
Please continue to share our films and the information about the #SOSBristol campaign. This is a really exciting and pioneering campaign as it is rare for four charities to pull together for one cause.
Thank you for your support.
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From all at Safer off the Streets - Thank you!!
An update for Safer off the Streets - Help Bristol's homeless night shelters
Dec 14 2016
Wow – what a way we have come over the past few weeks! We are delighted by the support and compassion that is being shown by our Bristol Community. Thank you so much!
We have already raised over £17,000 online which equates to over 1,000 bed spaces for homeless people this winter! We are also hearing from lots of groups and individuals who are supporting us with fundraisers in the community too and we look forward to updating the total to include this in the coming weeks.
It certainly looks like we will hit £20,000 in the next few days but please continue to share the campaign with people – let five of your friends or family members who care about helping vulnerable people in our community know about SOS Bristol – it really will help to make all the difference.
If you haven’t seen the amazing '2 Sides of Bristol' video from Aspect Film and Video yet, please do watch and share it: http://bit.ly/2hwjMlh
An update for Caring at Christmas:
We’re overwhelmed by the generosity of people at this time of year, and have received a steady stream of food and clothing donations – not to mention two different children getting in contact to offer homeless people their Christmas money! Our efforts to sign up volunteers for the Christmas shelter are also going well, with over 500 volunteers from Bristol and beyond taking up shifts to help us run our Christmas shelter. But we still need more, particularly for our evening shifts. If you’re interested in helping out, please check our webpage. In a touching gesture yesterday, a local 12 year old girl got in contact with us yesterday offering to donate her Christmas present money to homeless people.
Bristol News:
You may have read that on 24 November St Mungo’s coordinated the annual street count of people sleeping rough in Bristol. Whilst the official figures now show a 27% reduction of people sleeping rough, we need to remember that this new figure of 74 people on this night is still too many and does not take into account some of the people we know to be sleeping rough who were not visible on this night. It is just a snap shot, which clearly shows far too many vulnerable people on our streets.
The two main reasons for people to start sleeping rough are relationship breakdown and eviction. Relationship, debt, job or tenancy issues are the early warning signs that could lead to rough sleeping. If you are anyone you know are having problems, get advice and guidance early.
St Mungo’s are running an auction which you may be interested in viewing which ends on 15 December – happy bidding!
Thank you again from all at SOS Bristol!
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Shelter at Blue Monday 2017!
An update for Blue Monday 2017
Dec 13 2016
Shelter helps millions of people across the UK every year struggling with bad housing or homelessness through our advice support and legal services. And we campaign to make sure that one, no one will have to turn to us for help.
We provide people with the best possible help to solve their housing problems. Free accessible advice is available in our face-to-face advice Hub in Bristol, on our website and via expert advisers on our helpline.
Support the Blue Monday event by pledging to support #BlueMondayBris on Fundsurfer.
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Talking Money at Blue Monday 2017!
An update for Blue Monday 2017
Dec 13 2016
Talking Money has dedicated its mission to, “improving lives by tackling financial problems,” since 1990; empowering people to take control over their lives.
We work in Bristol and the surrounding areas to increase financial inclusion through supporting people with accessing benefits, reducing debt and expenditure and tackling arrears and fuel poverty.
We meet people every day who face many challenges like sickness, old age, disability and even sudden changes in life like divorce and finances can simply be an extra stress.
We aim to be there for people in those times, helping them find long lasting solutions. As one service user said, “I came having had no sleep, distressed, anxious about money and housing issues. I left in control of my situation rather than being controlled by it.”
Support Talking Money & others by pledging to support #BlueMondayBris on Fundsurfer.
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Album Recording Finished
An update for Original punk blues album by Bristol-based duo Husky Tones
Dec 7 2016
Hello, I realised its been a while since up dating everyone about the album. We finished recording a couple of weeks back the album has been mastered and now is getting printed. It sounds fantastic we are looking forward to sharing it with you in 2017. If you're in Bristol this weekend we'll be doing two very different gigs. One acoustic at the Eldon and the other full on punk rock blues electric at the Fleece on Monday. Details on our website (which is also been updated). Thank you all again. Victoria and Chris. xx
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Our very first crowd fund .. one week in
An update for St George's Bristol Crowdfund
Dec 6 2016
Huge thanks to each and every one of you.. the first 70 backers of our first ever crowd fund appeal!
Having raised over £5 million from major funding partners, representing 90% of the total for our Building a Sound Future appeal, our aim has always been to reach out to as many people as possible to contribute the final 10%. Our public appeal is set to raise a total of £500,000 over the next year, and a major part of achieving that is securing this crowdfund target of £200,000. Thanks to your support at the very start of this campaign, together with our match funding partners and gift aid, we have raised over £10,000 in the first week, which is a fantastic result.. thank you!
With your continued support by sharing the campaign and encouraging others to get involved we can continue to build the momentum of the campaign and attract an ever wider group of donors, from throughout Bristol and from music lovers everywhere.
Our Building a Sound Future project is all about making St George's Bristol more accessible. The new extension at the heart of the project creates welcoming new entrances front and back, as well as step free access for the first time in our history. New flexible spaces and much improved facilities, from more toilets to a lovely new garden facing cafe bar, will welcome artists and audiences who already know St George's for its fine acoustics and intimate atmosphere, while also ensuring we can extend that welcome much more widely, to all of Bristol's diverse communities.
We are reaching out to all of our supporters and to all the artists and audiences coming through our doors for concerts and events in the busy run up to Christmas. Look out for further updates as we work towards our target, and please do continue to share our campaign as widely as you can!
Thank you again for backing our first ever crowdfund right from the start, and ensuring our public appeal has got off to a flying start!
With all best wishes,
Simon
Simon Farley, Head of Fundraising & Development, St George's Bristol
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SOS Bristol has reached £10,000 – thank you!
An update for Safer off the Streets - Help Bristol's homeless night shelters
Dec 6 2016
What an amazing achievement – the #SOSBristol campaign has reached over £10,000 in donations to help Bristol’s Night Shelters this winter. Another huge thank you to everyone who has pledged.
We’ve also been lucky to have a couple of high profile tweets about the campaign from supporters Simon Pegg and Will Self, meaning #SOSBristol has been shared with over 6 million followers! Of course, there is still a way to go to reach that £100,000 target over the coming months, so please - keep sharing and spreading the word.
If you’re interested in volunteering this winter, Caring at Christmas would love to hear from you! They need 500+ volunteers over the Christmas week, so if you can spare some time to help spread a little cheer this Christmas, please visit www.caringatchristmas.org.uk/volunteering for more information.
If you are concerned about someone who is sleeping rough please contact StreetLink via www.streetlink.org.uk
Thank you again from all at Safer off the Streets for your incredible support.
#SOSBristol
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Thank you from SENDaWelcome
An update for A community-building social for children with special needs and their families
Dec 6 2016
Dear supporter,
Thank you for funding SENDaWelcome's first social event last Sunday. We had a wonderful afternoon of music, adventure, creativity and play! It was exactly as we had hoped with a great turn-out. We want to build on the success of the event and continue to ensure we have a platform by which our children with SEND can be heard and seen in our community, in the same way their non-SEND peers can.
In January 2017 we will be running workshops for children to produce creative work that we will display as part of the local Window Wanderland (http://www.windowwanderland.com/). We will keep you posted about the date and venue for this.
Please also show your support by following us on Facebook and Twitter. We have pictures of the event there to enjoy!
Many thanks and all the best,
The SENDaWelcome Team.
(Julie, Viviana, Maria, Daniella and Katarina).