To receive an update from Ingrid Fernandes on the project.

Jeff Hudson, Chair of Windsor Cristian Action, said that the needs of the vulnerable within the community had never been greater. The charity had been established in 2013 with an aim of supporting vulnerable people within the Windsor community by giving them access to immediate support, but also helping them in the process of rebuilding their lives.

Jeff Hudson went on to say that there were four different areas to the charity, which were all divided into different projects that each focused on supporting the vulnerable. These were as followed:

·       Windsor Food Share

·       Windsor Homeless Project

·       Street Angels

·       More than a Shelter

Jeff Hudson then gave some context and added detail on each of the four. The Windsor Food Share’s main aim was to support the hungry families and individuals that resided within Windsor with non-perishable food. He stated that the rise in inflation had of course seen a rise in costs and this therefore had hit the most vulnerable within society. More pressure had now been placed upon households due to these rising costs. He said that many of the people that visited Windsor Food Share had homes of their own and worked jobs, however the organisation ensured that even the most basic of food items were provided to fight against poverty. There was a salaried manager and also up to 50 volunteers. In 2022 alone, meals were provided for up to 7,000 plus individuals, although maybe repeat persons.

The Windsor Homeless Project supported the homeless and vulnerable people of Windsor with a safe space via a local day centre. They are provided with hot meals and also other services that are essential for wellbeing. These included healthcare and professional housing & tenancy advice. This gave the homeless and vulnerable a strong foundation to build upon, to improve their lives. Services that were also available included laundry, access to the internet and also access to a telephone. 12 guests had been setup in housing and 3 had been seen to go into full-time employment too.

The Street Angels provided care and safety to predominantly young adults and also rough sleepers during the night who required medical attention, shelter or maybe some other type of support. The night time economy in Windsor played a key role in this, often taking in people who required assistance late at night. Patrols occurred nearby to clubs and pubs, and paramedics also attended these patrols too.

Finally, ‘More than a Shelter’, provided overnight accommodation and meals to a range of rough sleepers during the three coldest months of the year. These were predominantly January, February, and March. A warm hub was also to be set up during the days of the week in which the day centre was not open. This would provide not only food, but also company to those people who were feeling lonely or isolated in their community during the week.

Jeremy Crame, Trustee of Windsor Cristian Action, said that after a lengthy search for a premises, a property was acquired on Alma Road. This was to become the hub for all four of the above services, and that it would be beneficial to bring all of them together under one roof.

Jeremy Crame then set out a vision for the building, but of course stressed the need for additional funding to make any of these a reality. They included the following:

·       A fully working kitchen to help cook and provide hot meals to vulnerable people.

·       Essential storage facilities for the Windsor Foodshare.

·       A community café, to act as a safe space to meet people and get advice. (In time it would be beneficial for this to run by guests).

·       A kitchen garden, where the whole community could get involved together.

·       Educational and rehabilitation support services.

·       Segregated sleeping facilities during the winter months.

·       Shower and laundry facilities.

·       A hub for the Street Angels’ equipment.

Jeremy Crame added that planning permission had been received, which allowed for them to make alterations to the building. The building had now been completely gutted and a new central heating system had been installed. Double glazed windows and doors were also going to be installed by the end of February. The RBWM Property Company had been assisting the organisation throughout. Depending on funding, the aim was to have the Alma Road site open by Summer 2023.

Jeremy Crame added that they had successfully raised a large proportion of funds via donations, grants, and pledges. He did note however that there was still an £80,000 shortfall in order to complete the project in its entirety. He admitted that the rising cost of materials and labour were a big risk that required continued focus and review, especially in the current financial climate.

In 2022, the Homeless Project helped 187 individuals who came through the doors. He admitted that covid was the best thing to ever happen to the homeless as it urged Central Government to house the homeless for their protection, with an aim to move them into eventual permanent housing. He said that the press releases for Windsor always stated that there were no rough sleepers, however this was not true, with 9 new people being registered last month alone. Many of whom, the average person would never meet as they could be potentially too shy or ashamed of their situation.

The Chair thanked them for their presentation and also their invitation to her before Christmas to their fundraiser. She acknowledged that there were many moving moments discussed that day.

Councillor Price asked for clarity over the geographical scope of the service. Jeremey Crame said that it was a wider area than just Windsor. Locations included areas such as Ascot, Maidenhead, Datchet, Horton and Wraysbury. Ingrid Fernandes, Windsor Homeless Project, said that they had reached out to people across the borough to inform them of the projects, to spread awareness and the need for funding.

Councillor Price then said that the increase of persons attending the Windsor Food Share was 30% year on year opposed to 20%. She added that the projects also aligned extremely well with the borough’s Corporate Plan, which was very pleasing to see.

Councillor Hilton said that it was very sensible what had been done, bringing all the four services under one roof. He agreed with Councillor Price’s comments about it being well aligned with the Council’s Corporate Plan. He wanted there to be more exposure of the project. Ingrid Fernandes said that they had many volunteers and also a social networking team, but she would feed back. Jeff Hudson agreed and said that they already had lots of willing people who were happy to help, but of course more exposure would be even better.

Councillor Wisdom Da Costa agreed with Councillor Price’s points also and acknowledged that the poverty line was beginning to increase, which in turn was going to bring more demand to the services that they provided. He asked if there were any trends on why people were coming to in to use the services that were on offer. Jeremy Crame said that the number of people who registered with them fluctuated massively throughout the year. He said that he had been with two individuals earlier that day who resided in the stairwell of the Waitrose car park.

Councillor Wisdom Da Costa then asked about the Street Angels and asked if any trends were being seen with this now that the night time economy had opened back up again after covid. Jeff Hudson said that there were no real trends, however levels of engagement were back to similar levels to before the pandemic occurred.

Councillor Wisdom Da Costa then asked if the Food Network could attend a future forum to discuss what they were experiencing to get a picture of the wider issue within Windsor. The Chair thanked him for his suggestion and said that she would meet offline with Ingrid Fernandes about this matter with the appropriate officers in RBWM, such as Jesal Dhokia.

Councillor Price asked where people could go to find out more about the services that were on offer and how they could contact them. Jeremy Crame said that challenges that had arisen included the issues of both insurance and funding. Ingrid Fernandes encouraged people to visit their website for further information which was ‘windsorchristianaction.org’. She also invited any interested parties to attend the site.

Councillor Davey asked how the service managed the distribution of time sensitive vouchers, and how they managed the separation of people from the service afterwards. Jeff Hudson said that people would always be assisted if they came to the Food Share, and vouchers were given out for 1, 2 or 4 weeks. Discussions would then take place about whether further ongoing provisions would be provided, but he was not involved in these discussions.

Councillor Knowles said that they were the jewel in the crown of the borough and commended their efforts. He said with regards to the Street Angels, that they were the key enabler of the nightlife in Windsor. He said that people came to Windsor to enjoy the nightlife, because they felt safe to do so, and that was because of the success of the Street Angels. Jeff Hudson thanked him for his kind words and said that they hoped that the Street Angels could go from strength to strength, working alongside TVP.

Ed Wilson asked what the key risks were for the Alma Road development currently. Jeremy Crame said that the main issue was funding. The building had been surveyed, broken pipes fixed, and vermin exterminated.

Councillor Carole Da Costa said that her understanding was that the borough already paid a charity group to help vulnerable people get healthcare and back into work etc. She asked was there a reason that people were not accessing this group, and instead came to them. Jeremy Crame said that if they went to the borough, they would not receive as much wider advice as if they came to the group themselves.

Councillor Cannon said that himself and others on the forum were volunteers at the ‘More than a Shelter’ group and he said that the move to Alma Road was very commendable and thanked everybody for attending. The Chair echoed this.