A new lease of life for an old barracks supporting homeless people and the wider community.
Homelessness
North Bedfordshire
Sep 2014
The Dovecote Project – A New Venture at Emmaus Village Carlton
CRASH Patrons saw first hand the impact of their support when they visited the completed Dovecote Project, an innovative development at homelessness charity Emmaus Village Carlton.
The need
At Emmaus, homeless people find a place where they can enjoy companionship and support. All Companions (residents) work full-time with the onsite Shops and Bistro providing a commercial setting where skills can be learnt in a friendly atmosphere.
The solution
Six additional bed spaces and improved training opportunities for local homeless people have been created along with a refurbished Shopping Mall experience and History of Emmaus Learning Zone.
How patrons helped
In close partnership with the project’s architect and long-time Emmaus volunteer John Creasy, CRASH supported the first phase of this development by sourcing free materials from patrons British Gypsum and Knauf Drywall.
British Gypsum also donated materials for the second phase which saw the extensive refurbishment of the retail space, a vital part of the Emmaus social enterprise model. New internal walls were created and new flooring was laid throughout thanks to Altro and Heckmondwike.
The forecourt has been paved with materials donated by Marshalls and the external façade rendered with STOMIX StxThermEco System a pioneering new product which was given to the project free of charge by Sto Ltd.
The total value of CRASH’s help was over £50,550 which included a grant of £30,000.
The social impact
At Emmaus, homeless people find a place where they can enjoy companionship and support. All Companions (residents) work full-time with the onsite Shops and Bistro providing a commercial setting where skills can be learnt in a friendly atmosphere.
“The old building was so cold we had to work in our coats, gloves and hats. It really was not a nice place to work. The customers would pick up on how cold it was and wouldn’t stay for any length of time to look around, which was bad for business. The roof was so bad when it rained we would have to put buckets, even a paddling pool on the floor to catch the water leaking through the roof. It meant we couldn’t display furniture in that area because of the risk of water damage. The new furniture shop is so important to us all. It will also give us much more space to display all the wonderful furniture we get donated by our loyal customers, and no more leaky roof!”
at Emmaus Village Carlton
