What does Christmas mean to people affected by homelessness?

What is Christmas to those without a home? 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…

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Welcome to our Christmas Appeal 2021

Today we launch our Christmas Appeal to provide a gift or a hot meal to somebody affected by homelessness We are fast approaching Christmas and people are already busily following street lights under the haze of the cold evenings, watching the displays in windows as they search for a gift to share with their loved…

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Fundraising: Winter is Coming

Fundraising in the winter? We dare you! Summer seemed to go fast, didn’t it? We’ve had an interesting time in fundraising – most of the excitement came from our online art festival, but we have also had some fantastic donations come in which we have really appreciated. As we approach winter we are looking at…

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Green Fingers means Positive Space for Service Users

We are delighted to be working with Brodie, owner of Green Fingers Gardening Specialists, and his team who have helped us landscape our gardens to provide a place for service users to relax and unwind. Having social areas where our service users can de-stress, relax and take time out is an important part of their…

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Yearly update from SSJ

It’s been a really busy year for us at the Society of St James, just as it has been for people from across the world. We hope you have all had a good year and are in good health and spirits as we head towards the second part of 2021. The year started with news…

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Isle of Wight Bike trip builds confidence for service users

The Isle of Wight is renowned for being a place that is perfect mindfulness, and 12 service users were given the opportunity to try this for themselves with a bike riding team-building and exercise. We provided the opportunity for service users to experience the thrill and excitement of a bike ride to and from Sandown,…

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News: Safer Neighbourhood Fund featured in Portsmouth News

The Safer Neighbourhood Fund, a scheme by our partners The Southern Co-op was recently highlighted by The Portsmouth News. The report says; “working in Portsmouth and Southampton, The Society of St James has helped 23 ex-offenders learn new life and social skills, helping them to find jobs, become volunteers, and reconnect with family. The society…

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Fundraising – How to Support Us

Welcome to the first in a new series of blogs about how you can fundraise for SSJ. As a charity that supports people affected by homelessness and complex issues such as a history of trauma with subsequent alcohol dependency or drug addiction, we are always looking for ways to brighten up the lives of the…

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“I need help” – Liam’s Story (Case Study)

“I NEED HELP” – SSJ WAS THERE WHEN LIAM WAS READY TO TURN HIS LIFE AROUND Liam Crook has been talking to Project Worker Elizabeth Judkins about his journey to recovery and the part SSJ played in his recovery as part of our ’ 50 stories’ series. Colleagues at North Lane Lodge are immensely proud…

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50 Years and 50 stories for our Golden Jubilee

50 years – Our Golden Jubilee 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…

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