THE
JULIAN TRUST
NIGHT SHELTER FOR THE HOMELESS
NIGHT SHELTER FOR THE HOMELESS
THE
JULIAN TRUST NIGHT SHELTER FOR THE HOMELESS |
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A Brief History |
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The Julian Trust started life in 1986 when a small group of concerned individuals felt there was a need to do something for those who were sleeping on the city streets of Bristol in doorways, derelict buildings, cemeteries, and car-park stairwells to name just a few of the uncomfortable and unsafe locations. They decided that an emergency Night Shelter was needed to provide the first rung on the ladder out of homelessness.
Volunteers and money were required. So the news
spread, mainly by word of mouth, and the public responded. But nothing could
happen until a building could be found from which the Night Shelter could
operate. By September 1986 the organisation had been granted charitable status
and the Catholic church of St Nicholas of Tolentine generously offered one
of their annex buildings in Pennywell Road as a temporary base. The Night
Shelter opened
its doors to its first guests and there it stayed in cramped conditions
for over a year until December 1987.
In December 1987 the Church of England made available the
hall and other rooms within St. Thomas Church near Bristol Bridge. This provided
a larger dormitory, a better kitchen and sleeping quarters for volunteers in
the bell tower! At the same time another new charity, Caring
at Christmas,
was formed by members of the Julian Trust and other interested individuals.
Together, the first Christmas Shelter was opened offering 24-hour provision
for five days. The Night
Shelter stayed at St Thomas’ for the next two years, finally moving
in April 1990.
In April 1990 the Bristol Bus Company kindly offered its empty
offices and garage workshop in Marlborough Street near the bus station for
our use. This move provided better facilities yet again with much more room
to organise. But first the deep bus inspection pits had to be filled in with
tons of sand—the
volunteers who helped on that weekend will never forget it! The Night
Shelter was based
here for just over two years until July 1992.
In July 1992 the Night Shelter moved to Dean Street. For
the first time rent had to be paid! It was now clear that the Night
Shelter itself was really without a long-term home of its own, moving
every two years into buildings that were not entirely suitable for its purposes.
Furthermore, needing to ask the public for donations to pay a commercial rent
was not the best use of their money. Could they instead be asked to fund a
real home for the Night
Shelter?
It would need to be purpose-designed to have all the best features of our previous
buildings and to meet Bristol City Council planning requirements. So began
the Bristol Night Shelter Project.
The hunt was on for a suitable warehouse property to convert and surprisingly,
after looking at many possibilities, an opportunity arose just across the courtyard
from the Dean Street site. Caring at Christmas purchased the building.
The Julian
Trust contributed £121,000
from its funds for refurbishment of the building and for planning
and publicity costs. Public donations, received by the Bristol Night Shelter
Appeal (jointly organised by the Julian
Trust and
Caring at Christmas), then paid a further £237,000 to complete
the refurbishment work. The ventilation system, gas central heating and the
toilet/shower block took up the largest proportion of this money.
In July 1996, after exactly four years in Dean Street, we moved into our new home with facilities that met high standards in environmental health and a lease from Caring at Christmas that would allow us secure tenure hopefully for 50 years. It would of course be wonderful if the need for a Night Shelter had disappeared long before 2046!
2006 sees the Twentieth anniversary of the Julian Trust. Events have been organised for supporters and former volunteers. Please make contact if you would like to be involved, especially if you have some photos or stories to tell or some ideas to contribute to the planning.
Page © 2007 The Julian Trust Ltd.