Catching Lives is a

charity Charity may refer to: Common meanings * 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 sha ...

based in

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, that assists rough sleepers, the

homeless Homelessness, also known as houselessness or being unhoused or unsheltered, is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. It includes living on the streets, moving between temporary accommodation with family or friends, liv ...

and those in insecure housing. It relies on donations, volunteers 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 Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

Rowan Williams Rowan Douglas Williams, Baron Williams of Oystermouth (born 14 June 1950) is a Welsh Anglican bishop, theologian and poet, who served as the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury from 2002 to 2012. Previously the Bishop of Monmouth and Archbishop of W ...

was

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...

. 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 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. In smaller and village communities, it is often a separate building near the church, while on more restricted urban sites ...

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 Legal liability, 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 c ...

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 makes in that other country a formal application for the right of asylum according to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 14. A per ...

s. The foundation piloted

alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...

rehabilitation 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 the non-metropolitan county of Kent in England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county, which additionally includes the Unitary authorities of England, unitary auth ...

, 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, refers to anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the ...

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. ...

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.

Catching Lives Bookshop

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, book people, bookmen, or bookwomen. History The foundi ...

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 (represented by the Roman numerals 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 ...

, double jettied,

half-timbered Timber framing () and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy Beam (structure), timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and Woodworking joints, joined timbers with joints secure ...

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 character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

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 ...

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