Christmas is coming! Our virtual advent calendar is launching on our social media channels today, featuring original poetry written by people with lived experience and performed by service users, volunteers and members of the SSJ team.

The poems communicate different aspects of homelessness, covering topics including drug misuse, mental health issues, and addiction recovery.

The calendar also shows how you can donate to specific causes, such as buying a hot meal or a Christmas gift for our service users. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter (X) to unveil the advent doors throughout December!

This Christmas, Society of St James aim to raise £15,000 to help support people experiencing homelessness in Southampton, Portsmouth and across Hampshire. We hope that this appeal will help to break the stigma surrounding homelessness and fund essential services and support for vulnerable people this Christmas and throughout the year.

SSJ will be working with local businesses to encourage fundraising events such as Christmas Jumper Days and cake sales to help reach our £15,000 target. The charity urges businesses to share photos of their fundraisers on social media, tagging them and using the hashtag #SSJChristmas.

Chief Executive Trevor Pickup said:

 “Homelessness is a complex and often misunderstood issue that affects thousands across our region. Many people face stigma, discrimination, and isolation because of their housing situation. They are often blamed for their own misfortune, or ignored by society.

But we believe that everyone deserves dignity, respect and compassion. That’s why we are launching this campaign to raise awareness and funds for our work with people who are homeless and are facing multiple problems. We want to show them that they are not alone, that they are valued, they have hope for the future and that we will carry on supporting them despite what can often present as a protracted and cyclical journey to independence.”

To get involved, visit our social media channels today, or visit our dedicated Christmas Appeal page to view our fundraising packs and learn more about our fundraising goals.

SSJ provides a comprehensive range of services, including hostels, transitional housing, substance misuse services and an academy of life skills classes, volunteering, sport and craft opportunities. By successfully implementing these services, the organisation challenges the stigma associated with homelessness, provides support and rehabilitation, and promotes sustainable solutions to reduce the number of individuals experiencing homelessness.

We’re proud to announce that on March 6th we’ll be supporting Love Food Hate Waste’s Food Waste Action Week campaign.

This year’s rallying cry – Win. Don’t Bin – is a week of action which brings the nation together to save time and money by making the food we already have go further.

A soon-to-be-revealed celebrity ambassador along with a team of exciting influencers will be occupying the internet and shining a light on how the correct storage of food can provide a second (or third!) meal for free.

Throughout the week we’ll be posting fun and informative content on our socials!

Get involved. Find out how you can save time and money.

Take the quiz at lovefoodhatewaste.com/fwaw

How are we winning and not binning at SSJ?

The Society of St James are working with The Big Difference to ensure food is redistributed to those who need it. Sanjay, the Head of the Big Difference says “The Big Difference has now given away an estimated 2 million pounds worth of food since the beginning of the pandemic”.  We are extremely grateful for the unyielding efforts of the Big Difference, to make a big difference.

To support this redistribution, SSJ launched James’ Pantry at our head office towards the end of last year for our service users, residents and staff.

The increasing cost of living is having a huge impact on everyone but most painfully on those from deprived communities.

Many of those individuals suffering economic inequality are residing in SSJ properties or are accessing one or more of the other services that we offer here at The Society of St James.

James’ Pantry aims to offer a good value, environmentally friendly solution to the cost of living crisis across Southampton and eventually Portsmouth.

We collect surplus food donations from across our geography and mainly from The Big Difference and make them available, for free, to the Society of St James residents and service users.  As we also know that it is not just our service users and residents that are suffering, our staff can also use the Pantry for a small charge. Since we started in September 2022 we have counted nearly 600 visits to the pantry and we are learning how to improve the way we do things all the time.

If you would like to help by volunteering at James’ Pantry, donating food or cash to support growth then please contact us here.

Otherwise, please consider signing-up to our newsletter.

As we approach the middle year of our 50th anniversary, I am looking back at the year 2007 – and our 35th Anniversary memorial Booklet, which was produced to celebrate 35 years of supporting people affected by homelessness.

Over the next few weeks, I plan on reproducing some of the content from that booklet – as a reminder of who we are and where we have come from. It’s so important that we are able to look back at the journey we have been on, as well as the growth we have seen as a charity. It’s thanks to that growth that we are able to help and support more and more people each year.

Since the booklet was produced in 2007, we have opened a cafe where the public can pay it forward, taken on two care homes – and increased our support network for homeless people across Hampshire.

So let’s take a look at some of the stories from the booklet.

Patsy

We have already told the story about Patsy. Our CEO wrote a blog about him nearly two years ago, you can read that here.

The booklet goes on to say that Patsy was a well known and well-loved character around St James. Unfortunately, his drinking kept him unsettled, and he was in and out of the shelter and detox unit – but was most often found sleeping rough. Anne Barrett had the chance to take a number of portraits of Patsy, and from these, a painting was created – and this still hangs on the wall of our CEO, Trevor Pickup at our head office.

Sadly, one evening, Patsy was drinking and sleeping rough. It was a cold night and he went to sleep in a ‘skipper’, where he got locked in and sadly, suffered an alcohol induced seizure. Patsy was found unconscious the next day but passed away in hospital a few days later.

We would highly recommend reading the blog by Trevor to understand more about the character of Patsy.

What does Christmas mean to people who are affected by homelessness? Do they notice the bright lights, do they watch people walk by – Christmas shopping in the cold evenings? Do they wonder what might happen if they had the chance to enjoy a traditional Christmas, as we do, with friends and family?

The answer to the above is yes, but it is also complicated – with many more emotions and feelings playing a part in how people affected by homelessness feel about Christmas.

Last year we asked service users what Christmas means to them. Their replies ranged from exciting to scared and lonely. This isn’t unusual – as every person at SSJ is an individual with their own feelings and thoughts. Whilst some may look forward to our traditional Christmas Meal – provided thanks to our appeal – others may have thoughts of regret relating back to missed opportunities or lost loved ones which mean they find Christmas challenging.

Senior Support Worker Lucy recently spoke to Barry, who has been in our services for a while now, and his thoughts on Christmas show that all kinds of memories can resurface at this time of the year.

Barry said; “Christmas it is horrid, if it was a colour it would be black. It’s a very emotional time. There is a photo of my mum and dad sitting on a step in black and white from 1967, near Christmas time in 2015, I went back to the step and slept on it due to a relationship breakdown, and my mum had passed away.

“People helped me over Christmas time when I was homeless, someone brought me out a Christmas dinner one year, people gave me lots of jumpers, jackets and money which I was very grateful for.”

Barry continued; “now I am temporary accommodated, Christmas is still a hard time due to bereavement and mental health however I am working on myself and have better people in my life who support me now I am kind of looking forward to Christmas. “

Barry speaks about how Christmas can feel like the colour black, but ends with the fact that there is now a support network in his life – and the Christmas Meals Appeal gives us the chance to show Barry that Christmas can be a positive time of the year – and who knows what that good feeling might do for Barry in 2022.

Even for us, those who are lucky to have a home and a family to go home to at Christmas – this time of the year can be complicated, stressful and challenging. Those feelings can be multiplied for people who have a history of homelessness – some who are facing complex health issues too – meaning Christmas can feel incredibly daunting and very lonely.

Our appeal will provide a gift or a Christmas meal to people affected by homelessness, but most of all it will be provide hope.

Please support our appeal by clicking here.

If you want to find out more about our appeal – email Dennis.Jones@SSJ.org.uk

Thank you for your support this Christmas. 

Back in the summer of 1972 we saw the launch of the first digital watch, Atari set the video-game world in motion with Pong and the VW Beetle became the most popular car ever sold, with more than 15m sales since launch.

That summer also saw the very first service users take shelter in St James Church Hall, (St Nicholas Church, in Bernard Street, Southampton), in what became the very start of our endeavour to end Homelessness.

Since then we have increased the amount of housing for people affected by homelessness, improved support for people with complex issues such as substance misuse, as well as providing mental health support as a psychologically informed charity.

The society supports vulnerable people in overcoming challenges in their lives that prevent them from leading a fulfilling and rewarding life. We believe that having a safe place to call home is a fundamental human right and without this everything is a challenge.

Dennis Jones, who works in fundraising for SSJ says: “This is a time to tell the stories from 50-years of supporting people affected by homelessness. We want to hear from anybody who has worked with or been supported by SSJ.

We know there are many stories to tell and we want to celebrate the work done by our incredible staff and the journeys undertaken by people who have quite literally changed their lives. We want to share experiences from the past and present as we head into the future with our eyes fully on ending homelessness once and for all.“

Turning 50

We are fast approaching our 50th anniversary, at a time where digital watches can handle phone calls and millions of people now play video games for a living – yet homelessness has continued to affect people on every continent on earth. The world may have changed since 1972, but our goals haven’t.

We started out with 12-men in a hostel and now help thousands of people affected by homelessness each year. Our projects, such as Café in the Park and Jamie’s Computers have given service users the chance to step into employment – which gives much needed self-belief and hope, often leading to long-term employment elsewhere.

We wouldn’t be here without the support of the thousands of people across Hampshire who have donated, volunteered and been there by our side since day one, helping us spread the message of our work far and wide – together we have transformed countless lives.

The Golden Jubilee

As part of our build-up to our 50th anniversary next year, we will be publishing 50 stories from the Society of St James, from service users and supporters to staff – telling the stories you don’t usually hear and helping share the positive messages that we see every day – life-changing moments captured by people who have been here helping us tackle the ever-present problem of homelessness.

We welcome you in helping us celebrate our 50th anniversary. We will have more information on our plans over the coming months.

Want to support us during our Golden Jubilee year? Email: Dennis.Jones@SSJ.org.uk

On Saturday June 13th, SEMSU (Society of Electronic Music – Southampton University) – a society focused towards the student and young adults population in Southampton, will be hosting a livestream of exciting music in aid of SSJ

The event will be live on Twitch and Facebook, featuring top DJs and musicians including, BigN, Dubsonic, Hot Source, Jude and more. You can download the poster here.

The event is in partnership with FIXR, Bad Boy Pizza Society, Future Brew, and Round.

The event is free to watch, but you can pledge money for a ticket which will help SSJ transform the lives of the most vulnerable via this link: https://fixr.co/event/188352311

You can stay up to date with news about the event by following SEMSU on Facebook.

We at SSJ can’t wait to let our hair down and enjoy this incredible event in the comfort of our own living rooms.

This weekend saw the first of our events taking place in Portsmouth and Hampshire to give our female service users the chance to enjoy what most women see as a normal event. The events have been made possible thanks to the support from Homeless Link, Southern Co-op and HaHa Hairdressing academy.

SSJ decided to run events throughout the week to make sure nobody missed out. We aim to provide an opportunity for all of our female service users to enjoy at least one of our events this week.

Horizon Project Manager, Nicole, said: “Our event for service users started on International Women’s Day with a coffee morning in Portsmouth which involved two of our projects before we headed over to Southampton to watch the bake-off.

Following this, the ladies enjoyed a pampering session in the afternoon. Today (Monday 9th), four of our ladies are being treated to a wash and blow-dry at the HaHa Hairdressing salon in Portsmouth, with another five enjoying the same this afternoon.”

“There are still many events taking place this week as we focus on allowing our female service users to enjoy what most ladies enjoy as an every-day occurrence. This has all been possible thanks to the support of Southern Co-op, Homeless Link, and HaHa Hairdressing Academy.”

International Women’s Week

SSJ is running events all week, with more coffee mornings and pampering sessions taking place today, tomorrow and on Thursday.

You can also visited our dedicated IWD page to see more images from our events.

Our decision to hold events across the whole of the week, starting on Sunday 8th, was made so that we can give as many of our service users the chance to enjoy what is a normal life for people like us. We wanted to make sure that as many as possible could take advantage of a free haircut, some pampering, as well as other wellness activities.

Because of this, and because there are so many ladies who we have the opportunity to help, we chose to create our own Women’s Week, with events taking place in both Southampton and Portsmouth.

Sunday, March 8th sees a coffee and cake morning, supported by Southern Co-op at our Homeless Day Service. The ladies will also have the chance to enjoy a pampering session, as well as a foot spa.

Over in Southampton, the team at Southampton Street Hostel will be hosting a Bake Off for the ladies to compete in, with all food and prizes provided by Southern Co-op. Following this, there will be Reiki sessions, some delightful pampering, and some head massages for our service users to enjoy.

On Monday 9th March, HaHa Hairdressing Academy in Portsmouth will be offering 5 wash and blow dries to Homeless Day Service clients from 10:15-12:45. From 1 pm till 3, the same team will be providing the same service to some hostel clients.

There will be a coffee morning and pampering session for service users at Southampton Street Hostel on Tuesday, March 10th. Extra help is needed on this day, so if you are a hairdresser or beautician – please get in touch.

And finally, the final event of the week takes place on Thursday 12th March, with Kerry the Chocolatier teaching the Portsmouth Homeless Day Service users the art of making delicious chocolate. There will be cake and coffee thanks to Southern Co-op, and a pampering session by Leslie, plus Reiki, head massages and a relaxing foot spa.

We are sure you will agree that our female service users deserve the opportunity to spend the day doing things which seem normal to people like you and I.

Thanks to support from our partners Southern Co-op, and with funding from Ending Women’s Homelessness, SSJ are putting on a number of events for IWD, starting on March 8th and lasting the whole week.

We support women who have a history of homelessness, and many of these have survived domestic abuse during their life, leaving them with mental and physical traumas they can’t escape from. This year, #IWD is focusing on Generation Equality – which us all about equal rights for women across the world.

As a homelessness charity, we see the immediate impact of inequality on our female service users, and recognise more has to be done to support women in their fight to get off the streets and into a safe and secure environment where they can prosper.

A recent study by Woman’s Aid shows that 11,489 women accessed services across the UK in 2018, rising to 13,787 in 2019. There are 3,914 refuge spaces for women and children in the UK – but only 40 centres for marginalised women, such as those most likely to be affected by homelessness. As well as this, a report by the award-winning journalist Audrey Gillan showed just how much abuse women receive when sleeping rough – and this is something we are doing our best to counter.

IWD 2020

This year we have a number of events planned to give our female service users the chance to feel empowered. With help from Haha Hairdressing, therapists and beauticians, we will give these ladies the chance to feel the same way we all do on a normal day. We are also hosting a special bake-off event for our female service users to take part in – with a fantastic prize for the winner, all thanks to the staff at Southern Co-op.

Can you help?

We are looking for people who can help make #IWD special for our service users. We have a whole week of events planned from March 8th, and you can help. If you are a beautician, hairdresser, nail technician, or have another skill you think the ladies can benefit from, contact us below.

Contact us

If you can help, email nicole.forster@ssj.org.uk

Download our IWD poster and share it at your workplace, or in your community.

The orchestra will be playing music by Schubert (Symphony no.4), Dvorak (2 Slavonic dances & waltz), Faure (Pavane), Mendelssohn (Fingal’s Cave) and Delibes (Le Roi s’amuse).

Andrew Row, Concert Manager for the Solent Concert Orchestra, said: “Solent Concert Orchestra, based in Bramshaw in the New Forest, is a not for profit organisation currently applying for charitable status. We are a group of enthusiastic amateur musicians who love playing and performing a wide range of music to audiences in Hampshire and put on 3 or 4 concerts of mostly popular classical music each year.

One of our aims is to support local charities, and for our Spring Concert we have chosen to help the Society of St James in their invaluable work tackling the problems of homelessness in Hampshire.

Tickets cost £10, with entry free for under 16s, and can be purchased by visiting this link, or on the night. 

Download the poster here