Local charity, Harrogate Homeless Project, is looking to add to its panel of professional trustees and is inviting members of the public with relevant skills to get in touch.
The charity, founded by Harrogate churches in 1991, started life as an eight-bed hostel on Bower Street but now offers accommodation across the town for over 40 local people with a history of rough sleeping across. The Homeless Project also runs a day centre which provides a hot meal, health support and activities to support people at risk of homelessness.
The call comes amid shocking news that the number of homeless people dying has risen by nine per cent in the last year, according to monitoring organisation, the Museum of Homelessness. The Office of National Statistics found that the mean age of death for homeless men is around 45 years old and for women just 43 in a 2022 study and Homeless Link’s 2024 report into the homelessness sector showed that over three-quarters of day centre providers saw an increase in people experiencing homelessness for the first time.
Chief Executive Richard Cooper said:
We want someone to join our team of trustees to help us turn the tide on homelessness in Harrogate. We are looking for someone with an adult safeguarding background ideally who can bring their expertise alongside that of our professional staff team making sure that our client support continues to be of the very highest standard.
The role is voluntary but the new trustee will be working with an impressive team of longstanding trustees ensuring that the charity is continually looking to grow the support we give to local people with a history of homelessness. We want to make sure that rough sleeping is prevented where possible and when it does occur is a once-only experience.
Anyone interested in the role should contact Richard at richard@hhphostel.org for an informal conversation about the role.
