Welcome to our blog. It’s been a busy time here at Cyrenians so read on to find out what we’ve been up to since we last posted.

We’ve received a number of donations, for which we are very grateful. An ex-resident, who recently moved into his own accommodation, organised a football match in memory of his friend Martyn Jones and raised £300. We’d also like to say thank you to Fine & Country who gave us £3,000 towards our mental health provision and counselling.

The National Lottery Community Fund has celebrated its 25th birthday. This Fund supports our Mental Health Nurse post, enabling Louisa to continue her invaluable work with our residents. We are very thankful to the Fund and to everybody out there who plays the Lottery for the contribution that you make.

Halloween was a hive of activity … we set up a stall on Christ’s Pieces selling pumpkins harvested from our allotment and raised £60 for the allotment project. We did keep a few pumpkins back for a pumpkin carving competition between staff and residents at our ex-offenders project and once the contest was done, they made a delicious pumpkin soup to share.

Speaking of the allotment project, Cambridge Community Growing Group has written a lovely piece about it which you can find here.

National Living Wage Week happened in November, highlighting the fact that for many people in low paid jobs, rent in cities like Cambridge can be unaffordable and this can lead to homelessness. Here at Cyrenians, we are proud to be a Living Wage Employer.

A couple of residents have moved into their own accommodation since we last posted. P, aged 45, had been with us for four years. He’s worked closely with Louisa on mental health issues whilst also addressing various physical health conditions. He has also cleared outstanding debts and is now in his own flat. It was in a very basic condition so volunteers from CHOP (Cambridge Homeless Outreach Programme), a group of students from the University of Cambridge who fundraise and support the city’s homeless community, have given it a fresh coat of paint.

F, a woman in her 60’s, has been resident in our female only accommodation for five years after a breakdown in her mental health led to the loss of her tenancy. She is so happy to have moved into her own place and says one of the loveliest things is being able to have her grandchildren over to visit. We’ll be supporting her as she continues to access our older persons service.

To mark Trustees Week 2019, Neill Offley, our Chair of the Board of Trustees, has written about Cyrenians and what it means to be a trustee. We thank all our Trustees for the time they give and the wide range of skills they bring to support us in this important voluntary role.

Cambridge Cyrenians provides homes and support for 104 homeless men and women in Cambridge – on the basis of ‘homes not hostels’. We also support a wider group of people who access our range of services – our accommodation service, older homeless service, ex-offenders service, mental health service, our allotment project and support to enable people to engage in meaningful activities e.g. accessing training, volunteering and gaining employment.As the level of homelessness locally has greatly increased in recent years, demand continues to outstrip our available accommodation.The feedback from residents, service users and funders & stakeholders is very positive, which is a testament to the services provided by our Director and a team of experienced staff & volunteers.So where do Trustees fit in?The role of a Board Trustee is, as a member of the Board of Trustees, to oversee the work that Cambridge Cyrenians does and to help plan for the future. This includes ensuring good management of finances & resources, which remains important in the current economic climate as this provides the basis on which we provide accommodation and support now and in the future.Why be a Trustee?It provides insights into the services that homeless people of Cambridge find helpful, and the role that we can play alongside others.It also provides an opportunity to use skills you have gained elsewhere to support the Director and team in delivering services for homeless people in Cambridge and to plan for the future.Each Board Trustee brings their own background and the combination of Trustees skills & experience aims to help support the team deliver services & support for those who can benefit from what we do.Cambridge Cyrenians will be 50 next year!We have an important birthday coming up. In 2020 we reach 50 years of providing homes and support for the homeless of Cambridge.Trustees and the team of volunteers & staff are starting to plan how we might reflect on the services we provide, and ideas we might develop for the longer-term future.Neil Offley

Our Meaningful Activities Programme plays a really important part in helping our residents to reconnect with the community and to enjoy the pastimes that fire them up. The Meaningful Activities Coordinator helps residents to engage with a wide range of activities, from learning opportunities to work. One resident is taking a cookery course and is also studying horticulture while others plan to attend a barbering course. Language classes accessed by residents include English, Polish and Japanese. Positive engagement in these sort of activities builds confidence. If you have a skill that you think you could share with our residents as part of this programme, please let us know.

2020 is our 50th anniversary. We’re proud to be the longest serving homeless charity in Cambridge and we’re working on all sorts of plans to mark this milestone. We’ll be sharing them on our social media so make sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for updates.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cambridgecyrenians

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cambridgecyrenians

Twitter: https://twitter.com/camcyrenians

Life is getting very busy in the run up to Christmas now so this will be our last blog post of 2019. We’d like to thank everybody who has supported us in any way over the year and wish you all a very happy Christmas. See you in 2020!!