Wigan and Leigh emergency shelter initiative taken to Downing Street
Sixteen beds. A 10-week building programme. A £150,000–£200,000 project delivered through donated time, expertise, materials and labour.
People sleeping rough could have a bed at The Brick before Christmas, as dozens of businesses across Wigan and Leigh join forces to create a 16-bed emergency night shelter in little more than two months.
The Brick supports people in Wigan and Leigh who are sleeping rough or at risk of homelessness, providing food, friendship, healthcare and help to access housing.
Led by Wigan-based Greenmount Projects, businesses are donating time, expertise, materials and labour for the £150,000–£200,000 transformation. Wigan Council will fund the shelter’s ongoing running costs.
The Brick’s Chief Executive, Keely Dalfen, shared A Bed Before Christmas at 10 Downing Street after being invited to open the Prime Minister’s Rough Sleeping Summit alongside Angela Rayner, Dame Louise Casey and filmmaker Lorna Tucker. She called on communities nationwide to come together to tackle homelessness.
Keely Dalfen said: “What is happening here is extraordinary. In just 10 weeks, dozens of businesses are giving their time, skills, materials and labour to deliver a project that would ordinarily cost £150,000–£200,000. We are incredibly grateful to everyone involved.
“After 10 years of leasing The Brickworks, we bought the building last year. That gave us the opportunity to create overnight accommodation alongside our existing day services and now local businesses are helping us turn that ambition into reality.
“Every person deserves dignity, safety, connection and care, and no one should have to spend a night sleeping on our streets. Imagine what we could achieve if communities across the country did the same. The time is now. Let’s crack on.”
Mike Sharkey, CEO of Greenmount Projects, said: “We’re proud to be working alongside The Brick and fellow local businesses to help bring A Bed Before Christmas to life.
“Everyone involved is bringing their skills, time and resources together with one shared purpose: to give people somewhere safe to sleep and the chance to take a step forward.
“This is about more than a building; it’s about people supporting people. We’re looking forward to seeing the doors open and the difference this shelter can make to people’s lives across Wigan and Leigh.”
Coun Susan Gambles, cabinet portfolio holder for housing and welfare at Wigan Council, and chair of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategic Partnership Board, said: “This is a unique offer in the Wigan Borough and I am delighted that as a council we are able to support The Brick with this.
“The work that The Brick does is phenomenal. This shelter is going to give people a safe place to sleep with health support from nurses in house, and opportunities to get long-term support for the future.
“Homelessness can happen to anyone of us, we never know the circumstances that we might find ourselves in and it really is everybody’s business to prevent homelessness and support those who are homeless to get back into a home of their own so they can make a success of their lives.”
The Greater Manchester community can help get the shelter ready by contributing towards beds, bedding, furniture, food, toiletries and towels. Please contact The Brick before offering goods so donations match what is needed.
To offer practical help, contact [email protected]
To contribute, visit www.justgiving.com/campaign/abedbeforechristmas
Follow the transformation at www.thebrick.org.uk/a-bed-for-christmas