Gloucestershire Nightstop celebrates 20th year milestone

The charity's executive director Elaine Pearson said it was "amazing" that they'd reached the 20th year milestone

A man says he "can't thank" a homeless charity "enough" for helping him "changing his life around".

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, Gloucestershire Nightstop has helped more than 2,000 young people resolve or move on from homelessness since 2003.

The charity said it had seen a 50% increase in referrals over the last 3 months

Adam said the charity "helped in every way possible" after first being recommended to them in 2018.

Adam, who is using a false name to protect his identity, said before finding Nightstop, he was going through a "downfall spiral" and eventually spent a night on the streets.

"I fell out with everybody I spoke to. It was cold. It was one of those stormy nights. I had no blankets."

The charities offer a number of services including cooking classes and a day and night service for young people experiencing homelessness

"It was somewhere I could have never imagined being in my life."

Adam said he had tried a number of different charities, some who deemed him low on the priority list, before contacting Nightstop.

Adam said the charity eventually organised a host family for him to stay with in Cheltenham.

Our 'Bedrock'

Alongside a day stop service, the charity offer emergency accommodation where people with spare rooms, after training, are able to host a young person facing or experiencing homelessness.

Elaine Pearson, executive director at Nightstop said they were often recruiting and "couldn't" respond to "immediate needs" without them.

"They are our bedrock. All you need is a spare room," she added.

'Inspired'

"Without the hosts, people like myself wouldn't have a place to go," Adam said.

Adam added that he eventually got back on his feet but earlier this year found himself in a similar situation and therefore sought help from the charity again.

"They've been helping me look for places to live, they've made sure I've had a roof over my head every night."

Adam said they have also offered him cooking classes, which has now resulted in him working as a chef and has inspired him to one day own his own restaurant.

The charity have been working with Stagecoach, who have included a Nightstop advert on one of their buses

He has also recently moved into his own property, something he said wouldn't be possible without the charity's help.

"All the support they've gave me. I couldn't thank them enough. When I've been upset, they've been there to bring me up," he said.

Executive Director at Nightstop, Elaine Pearson, said it was "really amazing" that the charity was marking it's 20th year and to celebrate they have decided to undertake a "deep-dive research project" about homelessness in 16-25 year olds in the county, looking at the gaps, the needs and how the charity can work with other organisations going forward.

'Reach out'

Working with Stagecoach, Ms Pearson said: "We decided we wanted to do something that was really impactful and would have an affect and impact on young people going into the future."

For those in a similar situation, Adam said it was important to know there is help out there.

"Just reach out. Don't sit there and think there's a place that won't help you," he added.