Homelessness 40 years on

OldMungosForty years ago St Mungo's started working with homeless people in Covent Garden. Giving out clothes and soup from the back of an old ambulance, and helping to move people out of the London's large homeless encampments.

Our work has changed markedly in 40 years.

St Mungo's work in 2008/2009:

  • We worked with over 1,370 rough sleepers and other vulnerable people on the streets
  • We moved 450 people from rough sleeping into accommodation
  • We ran several street outreach teams in London who locate, meet and support people sleeping rough
  • We opened two emergency shelters when the weather took a turn for the worse, providing shelter, warmth, food and support to rough sleepers when it was needed most
  • We extended our services to Reading, Oxford and Bristol

Health - a St Mungo's priority

Living on the streets increases existing bad health and creates new symptoms. St Mungo's led the way by directly employing a nurse at a hostel as early as the late 1980s.

But the facts are still shocking - the average age of those dying while living in a St Mungo's hostel is just over 40! In 2008/09 we put a major focus on health work, introducing a new strategy offering joined-up services across physical health, mental health, drugs, alcohol and wellbeing. We can report that 87% of clients with substance issue problems are now getting active support and that 72% of clients with mental health problems are getting specialist help, either from our own team or from outside.

Accommodation - how St Mungo's accommodates homeless people today

SpringGardensAgain, the service we offer has changed markedly. We used to provide shelter in disused schools, hospitals and - in one case - a Marmite factory! Now we are able to offer a variety of accommodation alternatives that have improved standards of accommodation with easier access to the services which residents need.

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By April 2009 St Mungo's was:

  • Providing accommodation for over 1,500 homeless people every night
  • Maintaining 18 hostels, 39 complex needs housing projects, 35 semi-independent housing projects, 2 emergency shelters
  • Emphasising on supporting the client's independence - offering cooking facilities in new kitchens and giving on-site access to literacy and IT training among many other learning opportunities

Employment - St Mungo's helping homeless people find work

25 years ago 86% of our residents had jobs and today its only 4%. It is a frightening index of growing social disengagement.

PathwaysToEmploymentITSt Mungo's has always placed emphasis on helping homeless people find work. Helping homeless people develop the skills and confidence to help them in the marketplace. Our wood workshop started in the mid-1990s, training clients in woodwork and furniture projects - building many beds for our projects as a result!

In 2008/09 we helped 120 people into work and 700 into training. Our Pathways to Employment scheme operates in five of our hostels while our Putting Down Roots gardening project gives clients the chance to learn horticultural skills, get physically fit and acquire NVQ level qualifications - in 2008/9 they supplied 11,209 hours to help make parks and gardens more beautiful.

These are just some of the many strands of the services that St Mungo's provides for the homeless. We continue to learn and we continue to change our programmes to meet new and changing demands.

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