You were there. Being homeless is rarely by choice, INSIDE: How you have been helping people get back on their feet.

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1 You were there For supporters of the BBC Radio 4 Christmas Appeal with St Martin-in-the-Fields Being homeless is rarely by choice, it is usually a result of family life or health problems, like it was for me. Helping people get off the streets and get a flat it s not just about practical support, it gives people a new lease of life. Image Xxxx Xxxxx Your compassion last Christmas has been helping vulnerable and homeless people transform their circumstances. As you may know, your gift is shared between the Vicar s Relief Fund and The Connection at St Martin s. Over the last few months it will have helped people like Stephen, pictured, and you can read about his remarkable achievements inside. With your wonderful gift, you re reaching out to more of the people who are at life s lowest ebb and showing them that somebody is looking out for them; that there are people who care deeply about what happens to them. That s a powerful gift to give. INSIDE: How you have been helping people get back on their feet.

2 Thank you for paying attention to homelessness, you made a difference. There are an infinite number of ways to avoid paying attention to our fellow human beings, and many never pause to see the depth of poverty and loneliness around them. So, with Weil s inspiring words in mind, you are the first to hear that this Christmas we will be looking at the theme Pay Attention. Dear Friend, I m delighted to tell you that you helped raise an incredible 2.3 million during the 2014 Christmas Appeal. You can read about how your gifts have been helping vulnerable people in this newsletter. While planning for the 2015 Christmas Appeal we reflected on our human responsibility to do the little we each can to alleviate human suffering. The words of French philosopher and activist Simone Weil particularly resonated with me, Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity. Our year in How your money is spent. 2,500 people visited the day centre 680 people slept at the night centre 1,500 rough sleepers were supported away from the street 3,245 grants were awarded by the Vicar s Relief Fund Infrastructure Costs Communications and Appeal Costs To pay attention is to look deeply at a person to help them see how they can transform from being a burden on others to being a blessing to others. That s what St Martin s is all about. That s why we call upon your help. It takes a special type of person to pay attention to homelessness. From your gift to the 2014 Christmas Appeal I know that you care. Thank you so much for all your support. Yours sincerely, Revd Dr Sam Wells Contingency 4% 10% 6% 36% Vicar s Relief Fund 44% The Connection Thank you for being so generous. This shows you where your gift in 2014 will go to help vulnerable people. You were there for Stephen A string of traumatic events led Stephen, 23, from Blackpool, to become homeless. Thanks to you he got his own flat and now has a new job. As you may remember from the Christmas Appeal 2014, Stephen s life fell apart after undergoing treatment for leukaemia, his parents divorce and his father s death. Even while going through such a difficult time, Stephen kept studying, and achieved an incredible two A* at A-Level and two B-Tech Distinctions. I had leukaemia. There were points where I was in hospital for three to four months at a time. Of course it was hard being homeless but I just pushed myself to do the best I could, he said. After two years of being homeless, Stephen discovered a local charity, Street Life, which applied to the Vicar s Relief Fund for a grant to secure him a place to live. It was a massive relief to get the flat. I finally didn t have to worry about having somewhere to sleep, or whether I was going to have something to eat. I had somewhere to call home, says Stephen. The flat gave Stephen the security he needed to move forward with his life. He is now working as a business administrator and is saving to fulfil his ambition to study sports science and mathematics at university. Stephen added: If I hadn t got the flat when I did, I don t think I would be where I am now. People forget that being homeless is rarely by choice, it is usually a result of family life or health problems, like it was for me. Helping people get off the streets and get a flat it s not just about practical support, it gives people a new lease of life. 50 helps someone settle into their new home, with a moving-in pack of essential items. 3

3 Dorothy Dorothy has been volunteering for our Christmas Appeal for over 30 years, and has been part of the congregation at St Martin-in-the-Fields since childhood. She remembers when the church was helping homeless people in the early 1950s. Your gift is helping to inspire new artists Artist Margaret, who is taking art classes at The Connection, was inspired by Carcassonne Castle which she visited in Languedoc, France. Her painting will be displayed in the Crypt in August. I was suffering from depression because I lost several members of my family all in the same month. The art room is like a big family that s how I look at it because I ve lost most of my family. When I m drawing or painting my mind is focused on what I m doing. It makes me feel good because people tell me how good my work is. Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life Picasso. More people are sleeping rough in London but your gift is helping Your support means we can help homeless people across London rebuild their lives at The Connection at St Martin s. Our door is always open. Homeless people can find a bed for the night, and take part in activities and skills training. We also walk the streets each night to find and help people who have nowhere to go. How your money helps* 10 provides two people with new underwear, socks and mini toiletries. 5 gives someone a hot shower, clean clothes and a hot nutritious meal. 20 helps a rough sleeper begin to change their life with an assessment at The Connection. 45 provides a hearty breakfast for 30 people. 100 pays for an employability course, with interview techniques, confidence building and presentation skills and help someone get back into work. 50 helps someone settle into their new home, with a moving-in pack full of essential items. I ve belonged to St Martin s Church since I was a child. My father was a steward. I remember being there as a young woman at Christmas, watching 52% of those seeking help the vicar read the Appeal live from the with homelessness are pulpit. There is something about St Martin s, the welcoming atmosphere under 25. *Please note these are examples of how donations can be used, as illustrated and the work with the homeless. Source: Homeless Link report 2014 throughout the newsletter. 4 5

4 Since January your gifts have helped provide 1,108 grants to vulnerable people across the UK Number of grants provided High Low Here are four people whose lives changed because of you. Through the generosity of our supporters, like you, the Vicar s Relief Fund provides essential grants at short notice, and often within 48 hours. When someone s life has fallen apart, it can help them move into a new flat, cover rent arrears so they don t get evicted, or provide basic furnishings. When someone is homeless or facing eviction, caseworker Lesley Clifford applies to the Vicar s Relief Fund to help them. Here she explains what makes the Vicar s Relief Fund unique. I often go straight to VRF if the case is urgent and needs an urgent response because your system is, in my opinion, the best of all the charities I ve used. Other charities can take six to 12 months for a decision on a grant. The VRF has the quickest and most efficient decision-making process. However I am incredibly grateful to all of the charities and don t know where we would be without them! Wales: With your support, Lawrence received a grant of 90 when he was facing eviction. He paid off his rent arrears and moved forward with a clean slate. Newcastle: Coleen struggled to make ends meet after losing her job. You helped her pay off her rent arrears with a grant of 166. South Yorkshire: You helped Kev pay a deposit for his new home with a grant of 250, meaning he no longer has to sleep on a park bench. Scotland: With 250, Brian was able to buy a new cooker for his flat, after moving out of temporary accommodation. Source: Ministry of Justice ,000 families were evicted in the first three months of 2015, a six-year high.

5 You re supporting Ewa reach people sleeping on the streets at night The Connection s outreach team are on the streets every night, offering support to homeless people. On an average shift, keyworker Ewa typically walks seven miles around the City of Westminster. As she walks she looks through railings and behind stairways to check the hidden spots in our busy city for the homeless people who need our help. Ewa explains. There are so many people out there that I can t reach everyone. I might speak to 20 people, giving advice about housing, support for health or addiction, and how to access services. If I find someone new I can send them to the assessment centre where they can get a bed for the night. You have to understand people. Why they do what they do, what made them who they are, and what happened to them to put them on the street. I m often working with people that no one else can help. And every case is urgent. On a recent shift Ewa spoke to John, who had been sleeping on the street for a month. He was suddenly evicted from his place. His job pays minimum wage so it is hard to find somewhere to afford. And a homeless hostel will only take people on housing benefits. The night I met him all the assessment centres were full, so I couldn t help him. It is so horrible leaving someone on the street. Every donation makes a difference. We really need more keyworkers. Then I could reach more people, and not so many would go undetected. Volunteer support worker Piotr often joins Ewa on her shift, he said: I was on the streets of London for seven years. So I can tell homeless people that it is possible to change their life. When I see people make that change, it makes me very proud. 111,960 people in England approached their council as homeless last year. You were there for Ron You may remember Ron, a proud military man, from the 2014 Christmas Appeal. Thanks to the support of people like you, Ron s life is back on track. Ron left the army after serving for 22 years and worked as a driving instructor for 30 years. But he lost his job when his eyesight deteriorated, and found himself unemployed for the first time in over 50 years. He lost faith in life and became homeless. He said: I got tunnel vision, which is closing in because of my age. Consequently they took my instructor s licence off me, which meant I couldn t instruct. I couldn t find a job and started hitting the bottle. I had it all going for me, and it all went down the drain. While working for the Big Issue, Ron met outreach manager Beki from The Connection. Beki found Ron accommodation and got him help with his finances. He is now learning how to use a computer and is thinking about a photography course. Things are good. I m happy. My flat has everything I need. It was nice to be part of the Christmas Appeal last year, because Beki and others at The Connection have helped me tremendously. They changed my life. 10 provides clean clothes and toiletries for someone experiencing homelessness like Ron. Source: DCLG 2013/ Low res

6 You joined Hugh Dennis and Aasmah Mir to support the Radio 4 Christmas Appeal You were there for Hermen Hermen became dependent on alcohol, which damaged his relationships with friends and family. He was homeless for several years before your support helped him to recover his life. When Aasmah came to The Connection, what she saw and heard was positive and uplifting. The stories people shared with me took me by surprise. Instead of the feelings of sadness and gratitude, which I expected to feel, I heard positive stories from people moving on with their lives. From the many services at The Connection to the crisis grants given by the Vicar s Relief Fund, someone was there and this makes all the difference. 10 I can remember how much it hurt when I was sleeping rough and I really didn t have anyone sensible in my life. Everyone around me had their own problems. Hermen is now working as an outreach worker for The Connection, using his own experience to help others move away from sleeping rough and towards a better future. I understand losing progress very well because I ve been there. Setbacks happen when someone hasn t dealt with something, or built up any self-esteem 100 helps someone like Hermen attend an employability course and get back into work. or resolve. You hit that wall and you need someone to stop you falling right back to where you started I can be that person. In this job it s really important that you care about the person, and can see the potential in them and help them to achieve it. It s not a secret that I ve been homeless. I think the difference it can make is that clients know I have faith in them. 742 people sleep rough each night in London, out of a total 2,744 in the UK. This does not include people in hostels or shelters. Source: DCLG 2013/14 Hugh first became involved with St Martinin-the-Fields last year, when he met Ron who features on page 9. Hugh said: Ron told me how St Martin s helped him get out of the hole of homelessness and rebuild his life again. And the great thing is, he did Ron s story has a happy ending. The work at St Martin s runs year-round far beyond the Christmas Appeal. Every day, the team are helping many other people to find their way out of homelessness too. Will you join us next year to pay attention to homelessness? The 2015 Christmas Appeal our 89th will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Sunday, 6 December at 07:55 and repeated on Thursday, 10 December at 15:27. It will explore the theme Pay Attention. You will also be able to hear how your gifts change lives during Making a Difference on 6 December at 09:45 and repeated on Friday, 11 December at 15:45. 11

7 Thank you for paying attention when people needed you At St Martin-in-the-Fields our faith in people is at the heart of everything we do. We know that, with the right support, people can rebuild their lives. By supporting us you re helping to provide those vital services. But you re also sending out a very powerful message: you will not abandon people whose lives have fallen apart. Thank you for sharing our faith in people. About the Christmas Appeal. For the last 88 years the listeners of BBC Radio 4 have been there for thousands of homeless and vulnerable people across the UK. You can find out more about the appeal by going to our website below. Phone: kirsty.cunningham@smitf.org Web: You can make a difference all year round it doesn t have to be Christmas. Vulnerable people come to us for help all year round, and any gift you are able to give goes towards helping them when they need it the most. If you would like to make a regular donation you can use the form enclosed with this newsletter, download a form from our website or get in touch and we will send you one to complete. Registered UK Charity /261359