New contactless donation points help the homeless

New contactless donation points to fund the city's night shelters for people sleeping rough were launched this week in Broadmead; marking a new approach to supporting homeless people in Bristol.

Shoppers can now 'touch' their bank card on the points to give £2 direct to the #SOSBristol fundraising campaign. Safer off the Streets (SOS) was launched in November 2016 and is aiming to raise £100,000 for the city's night shelters. There are four night shelters in the city, offering 70 emergency bed spaces. Each shelter provides somewhere safe and supportive to stay whilst volunteers and staff work to help people find accommodation, and support them with mental and physical health and employment issues.

The night shelters are run by The Julian Trust, Caring in Bristol, Crisis Centre Ministries and St Mungo's - which manages several Bristol Mental health services, in partnership with Bristol City Council. SOS Bristol is an initiative from the Rough Sleeping Partnership, set up by the Council to tackle rising homelessness in the city through new service provision and awareness campaigns.

The Broadmead Business Improvement District (BID) are supporting SOS by donating the use of the units.

David Ingerslev, Project Manager at St Mungo's and Rough Sleeping Partnership Lead, says: "…We are delighted the Broadmead BID has donated the use of the units to us. There is nothing else like this in Bristol.

"They will make donating easier for shoppers who may not carry small change but who feel compelled to take action to support people they see rough sleeping. It is simple, immediate and will directly help people to be safer off the streets".

The four shelters are free to clients, with donations going towards running costs, laundry bills and volunteer expenses. Visit www.fundsurfer.com/SOSBristol to find out more and use the hashtag #SOSBristol on Twitter to join the conversation.