South Yorkshire charity, Help 4 Homeless Veterans, has this week purchased its first ever property to provide safe housing for veterans facing homelessness.
The five-bedroom Rotherham home, which has a blue plaque recognising its history being owned by and housing military personnel, will offer a stepping stone for veterans who are sleeping rough. During their stay, veterans will be supported by the Help 4 Homeless Veterans team who will provide proactive advice with onwards housing, accessing financial support and practical items for their next steps.
Steve Bentham-Bates, Chief Executive Officer at Help 4 Homeless Veterans, said: “Completing on the sale of this property is a huge milestone for the charity and the scope of support we can offer. Since the charity was founded, we have helped more than 1,100 veterans with their housing challenges and having this home as a safe space for veterans will allow us to continue and scale these efforts.
“There is a long history of military connection to the home too, which felt serendipitous and we’re incredibly grateful to the organisations that have engaged with us to make this possible, including the Mayor of Barnsley, Mayor of Rotherham, local contractors and the generosity of the general public.”
The work undertaken to transform the house into a safe base for individuals is being led by regional procurement specialist EN:Procure, as the project manager. EN:Procure will coordinate the contractors on its frameworks who have volunteered free or reduced rates to undertake minor renovations to the property over the next few weeks.
Simeon Perry, Head of ESG at EN:Procure, said: “We have always been impressed by the incredible work Help 4 Homeless Veterans does to protect veterans since we first supported them as our Christmas Charity of the Year in 2015. When they approached us for help we knew we could provide the professional knowledge and services to get the home ready. Several contractors across our frameworks are on hand and ready to turn this house into the space the charity needs.”
Renovations and cosmetic work are due to take a few weeks, with an official opening expected in spring, ready to house the first veterans.
If you can offer help with these works, please contact Richard Greenwood, Director of Operations at EN:Procure for more information.
EN:Procure
EN:Communities