Catching Lives is a

charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * Ch ...

based in

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

that assists rough sleepers, the

homeless Homelessness or houselessness – also known as a state of being unhoused or unsheltered – is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and adequate housing. People can be categorized as homeless if they are: * living on the streets, also kn ...

and those in insecure housing. It relies on donations,

volunteer Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...

s and fundraising within its local community. ,

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

Rowan Williams Rowan Douglas Williams, Baron Williams of Oystermouth, (born 14 June 1950) is a Welsh Anglican bishop, theologian and poet. He was the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury, a position he held from December 2002 to December 2012. Previously the Bish ...

was

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

. Catching Lives' Open Centre provides services such as meals, showers, laundry, clothing and a postal address to its clients. The staff and volunteers work with them to address issues they may have; get access to suitable accommodation, and find the motivation to take steps towards independent living. The charity operates a winter night

shelter Shelter is a small building giving temporary protection from bad weather or danger. Shelter may also refer to: Places * Port Shelter, Hong Kong * Shelter Bay (disambiguation), various locations * Shelter Cove (disambiguation), various locatio ...

in conjunction with local churches. 2016–2017 was its seventh season. The project opens

church hall A church hall or parish hall is a room or building associated with a church, generally for community and charitable use.

s for Canterbury rough sleepers. Volunteers transport bedding, cook meals and welcome those who stay.

History

Name

Catching Lives began as ''Canterbury Open Christmas''; before becoming ''Canterbury Open Centre'', and then the ''Scrine Foundation'' after founders Joan Scrine and her husband Ralph Scrine On 1 July 2010 the charity adopted its present name. It is a Registered Charity, number 1014868, and

Limited Company In a limited company, the liability of members or subscribers of the company is limited to what they have invested or guaranteed to the company. Limited companies may be limited by Share (finance), shares or by guarantee. In a company limited by ...

number 2719436.

Evolution

The original Canterbury Open Centre provided hostel space for the homeless in Canterbury. In 2002 it absorbed the ''Kent Literacy Scheme''; in 2004 the ''Canterbury Youth Projects homelessness advice service for young people, and in 2005 the ''Finding Your Feet'' scheme for

asylum seeker An asylum seeker is a person who leaves their country of residence, enters another country and applies for asylum (i.e., international protection) in that other country. An asylum seeker is an immigrant who has been forcibly displaced and mi ...

s. The foundation piloted

alcohol Alcohol most commonly refers to: * Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom * Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks Alcohol may also refer to: Chemicals * Ethanol, one of sev ...

rehabilitation Rehabilitation or Rehab may refer to: Health * Rehabilitation (neuropsychology), therapy to regain or improve neurocognitive function that has been lost or diminished * Rehabilitation (wildlife), treatment of injured wildlife so they can be retur ...

techniques for homeless people and unusually, job training. A resettlement team housed clients and assisted new tenants seeking long term homes. By 2007 it operated 146 hostel spaces and had 60 full-time staff. In 2009, the loss of contracts worth nearly £600,000 per year from

Kent County Council Kent County Council is a county council that governs most of the county of Kent in England. It is the upper tier of elected local government, below which are 12 district councils, and around 300 town and parish councils. The county council h ...

, who claimed quality standards were not being met, caused a funding crisis. The foundation's

trustees Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to t ...

denied the allegations but had to give all 66 staff

notice Notice is the legal concept describing a requirement that a party be aware of legal process affecting their rights, obligations or duties. There are several types of notice: public notice (or legal notice), actual notice, constructive notice Se ...

of redundancy. On 31 October 2009 the Scrine Foundation's night shelter closed after 14 years. A month later it re-opened as a

day centre Community centres, community centers, or community halls are public locations where members of a community tend to gather for group activities, social support, public information, and other purposes. They may be open for the whole community or ...

Catching Lives Bookshop

Old Kings School Shop Canterbury 1 (4901200691)

Catching Lives Bookshop is a volunteer run

bookshop Bookselling is the commercial trading of books which is the retail and distribution end of the publishing process. People who engage in bookselling are called booksellers, bookdealers, bookpeople, bookmen, or bookwomen. The founding of librar ...

that helps to fund the charity. It operates from ''The Crooked House'', also known as ''Sir John Boy's House'' or the ''Old Dutch House'', a quirky, skewed

17th century The 17th century lasted from January 1, 1601 ( MDCI), to December 31, 1700 ( MDCC). It falls into the early modern period of Europe and in that continent (whose impact on the world was increasing) was characterized by the Baroque cultural moveme ...

, double

jettied Jettying (jetty, jutty, from Old French ''getee, jette'') is a building technique used in medieval timber-frame buildings in which an upper floor projects beyond the dimensions of the floor below. This has the advantage of increasing the availa ...

half-timbered Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden ...

building at the end of Palace Street, opposite The Kings School. The shop is one of the most photographed buildings in Canterbury and stocks

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...

and non-fiction books, as well as CDs,

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl m ...

and DVDs.

References

External links

* {{coord , 51, 16, 27.5, N, 1, 4, 38, E, type:landmark_region:GB-KEN, display=title Homelessness charities in the United Kingdom Charities based in Kent Homeless shelters in the United Kingdom Homelessness in England