A special fund raising day to help the homeless is being held in one of a city’s hidden secrets.
The Bishop’s Gardens in Norwich will be hosting the event in aid of the King’s Lynn Night Shelter on Sunday, August 2.
The hostel at St Ann’s Fort, in Lynn, welcomed 104 guests during the 2019-2020 winter season, for a total of 2953 nights’ stay.
Now the night shelter has moved to a larger base at St John’s Vicarage, on Blackfriars Road.
Volunteers have been decorating the house and renovating its gardens ready for its opening in October.
Homeless people in Lynn have been supported through the coronavirus pandemic.
Night shelter co-ordinator Lucy McKitterick said: “We were able to stay open when the Covid-19 crisis began but closed on the planned date for the end of the season on March 30. “Most of the guests with us on the last night were offered temporary accommodation by the borough council in an impressive multi-agency operation to give as many people as possible a room of their own during the first months of lockdown.
“Between April and June this emergency accommodation remained open for those who were eligible and able to sustain a place in it. The Travelodge and other venues made rooms available and a huge amount of work was done by the Purfleet Trust and others to supply food and one-to-one support: many people are now in move-on flats or hostels and it’s been wonderful to see them with a room of their own after one or two winters as Night Shelter guests.”
Miss McKitterick said plans were now being made for the coming winter.
“There are still people sleeping rough in Lynn, or sofa-surfing with friends,” she said “Last winter over 40pc of our guests were known to be suffering from mental health complications.
“They and others with complex needs are more at risk from eviction, or not being able to cope with a tenancy, and finding themselves street homeless again. Others will come to us as the tensions of lockdown and possible job losses bring family break-up or problems at home.”
The fund raising day is being held in the Bishop’s Gardens from 11am - 4pm on Sunday, August 2. Tickets priced £5 must be reserved online via www.klwns.org.uk or by calling 01553 776109. To donate to the night shelter, click here.
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