News / homelessness
Bristol’s first 24-hour homeless shelter opens
An empty council office building in St Anne’s has reopened as Bristol’s first 24-hour shelter for homeless people.
With space for 30 beds, St Anne’s Shelter – run by St Mungo’s alongside charity partners Caring in Bristol, The Julian Trust and Crisis Centre Ministries – will reduce the number of people sleeping on the city’s streets this winter.
On Wednesday, James Brokenshire, secretary of state for housing, communities and local government, joined Bristol mayor Marvin Rees and his cabinet member for housing Paul Smith on a visit to the shelter on St Anne’s Road to see the facilities and meet with staff and clients.
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Communities secretary James Brokenshire (centre) on a visit to St Anne’s shelter
Brokenshire said: “It was humbling to visit St Anne’s winter shelter to witness the efforts of local teams to help get people off the streets and access the support they need, particularly during the cold days and nights.”
St Anne’s Shelter deputy manager Richard Chilvers said that he is looking forward to making a difference to the lives of people who have been rough sleeping and support them away from the streets for good.
Rees added that he hopes the shelter will make a real difference to the lives of some of the people sleeping rough in the city.
He said: “I am really pleased to see that our shelter programme continues to grow, as getting people a safe roof over their head is the first step towards getting them into suitable long term accommodation.
“Alongside St Mungo’s and our other partners we will continue to work with the local community as the project progresses, to make sure they can have a meaningful impact on how the shelter develops.
“This visit from the secretary of state was an excellent opportunity to showcase what Bristol is already doing, but also to highlight what else could be possible with the right funding and support from government.
“We have ambitious targets to reduce homelessness and increase affordable housing, but we are well aware that there are many more challenges to come.”
St Anne’s Shelter is in a former council office building
Bristol City Council has received £1.1m from the government’s Rough Sleeping Initiative to be spent over the next two years.
Alongside the St Anne’s Shelter, the money will also be made available for schemes including to help clients move in to longer term accommodation, freeing up places for rough sleeper referrals; and working with prison leavers to prevent them from ending up on the streets.
Read more: People of Bristol rally to turn double decker bus into homeless shelter
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