At The Winchester Beacon, our aim is to help people to break the cycle of homelessness by enabling people to rebuild their lives. We work together with our residents to understand their situation and goals and find the best ways to move forward.
Experience and passion drive our staff and volunteers to give people facing challenging circumstances and obstacles, the opportunity to pursue a more positive future.
A warm bed and nutritious food are the first priority but perhaps the most important service we provide is a wide-ranging programme of person-centred support to help residents find more permanent accommodation, work through any problems which may have contributed to their homelessness and also prepare them for independent living when they are ready to move on.
Our programme of support on offer to each resident includes:
- Support staff who provide one-to-one help, advocacy and support with housing, employment, personal finance and other essential needs on a weekly basis
- Confidential free counselling and psychotherapy service
- Support with finances and budgeting, plus help with benefits claims
- Opportunities to develop independent living skills, including tenancy, budgeting and first aid training
- Access to drug and alcohol advisory services and support
- Peer mentoring
- Recreational activities including weekly bike rides, free gym passes, art workshops and more.
We encourage our residents to engage with our core support services. They can choose as much additional support as they feel they need, based on their strengths and circumstances. We will also signpost to other relevant local support services where appropriate.
Outreach
The Homeless Street Outreach Team is a multi-agency initiative involving Winchester City Council, Two Saints, The Winchester Beacon and Trinity Winchester. The Outreach Team operates five days a week and conducts a thorough search of Winchester city centre where they understand individuals may be rough sleeping or where they have received reports of rough sleeping.
Rough sleepers are offered a warm drink, something to eat and help to access local services that will be able to give them a greater level of support.
Members of the public who are concerned about a rough sleeper can get in touch with Streetlink or Winchester City Council.