We’re going to be running a new feature where we talk to our members of staff about their work at SSJ and why they love working here.

We have hundreds of members of staff from unique and interesting backgrounds, some have been with us for years, others have come to us because they believe in our vision to end homelessness – and some have been service users for SSJ and now work with us to support others in a similar situation to what they were in.

Today we have a blog written by Sean Smith, a team leader for SSJ who works with some of of the most vulnerable people at SSJ. Sean has been with us a few years and wanted to write about why he loves working for SSJ.

Sean Smith:

I have worked with a variety of vulnerable adults and children across Hampshire for 22 years. After frequently working in partnership with them for many of these years, in 2019 I was lucky enough to land myself a job with the Society of St James. I had applied for positions previously, and it was no secret to my now-boss that I had been desperate to join him at SSJ for aeons, but hadn’t found the right vacancy that suited my skillset and experience.

All of a sudden, the chance to take the reins of a pioneering “housing first”-style service came to my attention. It was a no brainer and I applied. Getting the phone call to tell me I was successful was a moment of sheer elation. Next thing I knew, I was working for an inclusive, supportive charity that felt more like a family or a group of old friends than what I had experienced previously. Then, of course, the entire world went bonkers and we all faced a two-year period the likes of which we could have never imagined.

Throughout the uncertain, often desolate, always challenging pandemic period, I was privileged to be tasked with guiding and building the Supported Lettings Team, which provides intense, almost bespoke, psychologically and trauma-informed support for clients with long, chequered histories of homelessness, complex substance misuse and mental illness. I had moved from a businesslike, politics driven prior role to one where I looked forward to waking up each day to find out what the day held in store, working alongside and hopefully helping to nurture a team of dedicated, talented and hardworking staff.

The pandemic was a challenge we all met head-on, and gave me and my team some work experiences that we will probably never encounter again. Having to face scowling faced members of the public as we bulk shopped dry goods for our clients in supermarkets. Driving around the City trying to find hand sanitiser. Finding hand sanitiser that was made from a premium brand of gin.

Administering so may lateral flow tests that I could probably now do one with a blindfold on. Attempting to try and enforce a litany of social distancing rules and regulations with clients that have no intention of following protocols. Discovering the magical, buffering-tastic hinterland that is the online meeting. I loved it all really. I wouldn’t want to do it all again though.

I was privileged to be tasked with establishing not one but two brand new services for the Society, which are still going strong and in the case of the Supported Lettings Team, have expanded. I have had an amazing opportunity to work with some of the most unique, complex and rewarding clients. I now have some fascinating partnership working with a specialist NHS team, and work within a sector and with clients that very few people ever get to experience.

I am based in a beautiful house that has been developed and renovated with an eye on providing a homely, psychologically informed environment. I am seeing positive results. I see amazing staff doing amazing things with people that have gone through unimaginable trauma in their lives. I am so proud to be a part of it. Every day is different – I continue to encounter learning opportunities and am broadening my knowledge and experience at every turn, supported by a wonderful staff and a supportive management structure.

Coming to work for SSJ is the best decision I ever made. I am now in a role that combines all of my previous experiences, with the added responsibility of guiding and supporting other staff. With the successful tenders and expansion within Hampshire and beyond, I work for an organisation that I am genuinely proud of, and will happily sing the praises of each and every service under its umbrella from the rooftops.

Thank you to Sean for taking time to write about his work at SSJ

There are many ways to support SSJ, you can donate to help support people without a home, find out more about other ways you can support us, or if you are like Sean, maybe you’d like to work for SSJ – and you can find out about jobs we have available here.

So when we were thinking about the best way to help vulnerable people in our care, we decided that it would be an interesting idea to get our supporters actively taking part in their own challenges.

Whether it’s running a marathon with a Christmas tree on their backs, or undertaking a bike ride in North Devon to help build confidence, our supporters have constantly shown they are not afraid to taken on a challenge to help our service users.

Overcoming a challenge can help your own wellness and mental health, SSJ communications officer, Dennis Jones, said:

“I recently took time away from my smartphone – and the difference to my mental health was noticeable.

“Within two days of switching my tech off, I found myself drifting off to sleep much easier, and my brain didn’t feel as scrambled. So although it was a big challenge for me – it was worth it in the end.

“I wanted to transfer that feeling of wellness to our new campaign – and decided we should create the environment where people can overcome their own challenges to help transform their lives, and to have a positive impact on those less fortunate too.”

So what does that mean?

We are simply asking you to take on a challenge, to raise money – if you can – and to share your stories of overcoming your own challenges – in support of those who are confronted with the challenge of sleeping on the streets, or even the worry that they will never find a place to call home.

Some ideas

• Why not run a marathon on behalf of SSJ and help improve your health and wellness?
• Why not ride a bike to work each day – and donate the money you have saved to our 2020Challenge campaign?
• Why not have a tech detox and get friends and family to sponsor you to stay off your smartphone?
• Or why not get your work colleagues involved to raise money for SSJ as a team with your own work challenge?

For more inspiration, download this ‘Guide to Fundraising‘ from JustGiving.

Start your challenge

So whatever you choose to do, this is your chance to take on a challenge and at the same time raise money for SSJ – knowing that any money you raise will go towards helping provide safe accommodation to those who are most vulnerable in 2020.

Register now and start your own challenge.

We look forward to hearing about your adventures in 2020.

As the Chief Executive one of my tasks is sometimes to be part of an interview panel when we are recruiting.  When we interview candidates for a job in one of our housing projects, one of the interview questions we normally ask is why to do you think people become homeless.

We expect the successful candidates to mention drugs, alcohol and mental health as the underlying issues, alongside relationship breakdown.   Some of the better candidates might also mention people leaving prison without accommodation as being at risk of sleeping rough.

This general description is backed up by the personal histories of many who we help.  When residents arrive in our housing projects we take a brief history of their background and substance misuse or mental health issues often play a big part of the narrative of complex and damaged lives.  We also are aware that for a number of people, these are complex and long term issues, and these people may require support and assistance over a long term period.

One of the phrases often used is that “we are all just one payday away from being homeless”.

This conveys some of the risk of not being able to pay rent and the risk of ending up on the street.  However, for many people this is not the situation.   If I lost my job unexpectedly, I have a number of options, such as living off my wife, building up debt on my credit card and living off some savings.  But I would also be able to rely on friends, reasonable job prospects and a good CV.  Perhaps most significantly, I have good mental health and I am not struggling with a substance misuse issue, trying to find work with a recent criminal conviction or poor literacy or numeracy after a disrupted childhood upset my schooling.

So the role of the Society of St James must be to provide support and housing but also to be part of a pathway.  Sometimes called the “Recovery Journey”, individuals will need to have the opportunity to address their basic needs such as getting regular meals, getting clean and having some clothes to wear.  Then come medium term challenges such as getting involved in a treatment program or learning to live with an ongoing mental health issue.

Access to accommodation is a problem for people at all stages of their recovery journey.  The provision of emergency accommodation such as hostels or winter beds are crucial to get people off the streets but the provision of longer term accommodation is also essential.  People need to be able to move out of hostels and into more independent accommodation, such as a room in a shared house, a bedsit or a flat.

So as well as emergency accommodation, we have been developing more permanent housing.  Over the last 2 years we have purchased 14 properties.   When they are all refurbished these will create an additional 78 units of accommodation in Southampton, Portsmouth and Aldershot at a cost of £5.6 million.  This has been financed by a mixture of grants from Homes England, mortgages and donations we have received.  This will represent a 20% increase in the amount of accommodation we own.

Our county is facing a housing crisis which may take a number of years to resolve.  SSJ is doing its bit to increase the housing options for our service users and hopefully increases their chances of success in their recovery journeys.

We’ve announced our 2019 Sleep Out and are looking for teams and individuals to take part! The event takes place on November 15th, in Victoria Park, Portsmouth.

Want to join us? Register here.

Building society, Nationwide, has made £500,000 available to help support charities dealing with housing in the South West area. The successful projects were officially announced in April of this year, with SSJ named as one of the successful participants.

The money provided by this grant will be put towards our continuous aim to secure more property in Southampton and further across Hampshire, to house vulnerable people.

Dan Still, Nationwide’s Regional Director for the South West, said:

We know that there are many people who have been homeless or have experienced family or close friends without a home of their own, so it’s imperative that we do something about this.

Helping people into homes of their own is at the heart of what we do as a building society, which is why we’re making funding available for local housing projects.

You can see the list of successful projects on the Nationwide website, here.