Our collection will take place on Sunday 5 December from 11.00 until 1.00 pm.
Venue: Frenchwood County Primary Schhol, Frenchwood Knoll, PR1 4LE.
We will be collecting:
- pocket sized toiletries including wipes, hand sanitisers, deodorants
- feminine hygiene products
- Thermal tops/bottoms
- New underwear
- Non perishable food items such as ring pull tins of food
- Cereal bars
- Chocolates
- Sweets
- Biscuits
- Mini cans of soft drinks or small bottles of soft drinks/water
- Wooden cutlery
- Nail cutters *without* the little extra tools.
- All items *must* be pocket sized as the homeless *do not* have storage facilities except their pockets!
- We have already had a generous donation of hand made wollen scarves, gloves, socks and hats – so don’t need anymore. 😊
If you wish to Warm a Heart ❤ Look out for our posters on all social media sites.
Warm a Heart ❤ 2021
25 hand knitted scarves sent with love from the ladies of Alston A huge donation of winter woolies Bags rapidly filling up with your generous donations Bar came down in her smart car Bar with the KC gang Beautifully modelled Nveeda Beautifully modelled! Brilliant organisation Donation gratefully received from Adult Social Care team Enjoying rummaging through the bag Halimah sorting through the donations Happy with his bag! Happy with his gloves! I think i can put some more in these bags Knitted glove knitted gloves knitted socks Loading up the donations Lovingly hand knitted More happy recipients More scarves Not going to remain empty for long Personal hygiene products Searching for goodies Sorting out the donations Street Kitchen all prepared for distribution Thank you Alia Thank you Bar for bringing them over from Alston Thank you Cath @FCPS and Street Kitchen Thank you ladies Thank you Peniel Thank you Stacey and Martin The bags are filling up The hand knitted blankets look fabulous The winter woolies look fabulous Thermals will keep the homeless community warm Those hands need gloves! Volunteers starting to fill the bags We can’t do this without our fantastic volunteers We love the lovely ladies from Alston We sold these beauties Your donations will go to a good home
The photo shows some of the lovely people of Alston Moor modelling some of the scarves they have been busy knitting An Alston Moor lady with dementia knits squares and a friend makes them into blankets
Alston Moor is a giant area with one tiny town – Alston – and a few small villages and smaller settlements and farms, including Nenthead, Garrigill, Kirkhaugh, Ayle, Slaggyford, Lambley, Knarsdale, Halton Lea Gate. The total population is less than 3000. It always gets cut off by snow, every winter – maybe that’s partly why people knit!
These lovely people of approximately 25 have heard about the campaign through friends, craft groups etc and have come together to knit for our homeless community in Preston.
They chose to support the homeless cause and particularly Preston’s Promise because they know anyone can end up on the street through no fault of their own, and they see inequality growing. They make things with love for their own families and want to do the same for those currently adrift from family support. Someone had the idea to knit scarves for homeless people the length of the Cumbrian Way footpath, but hadn’t planned how many people would join in, nor where to send the scarves once made. I thought of you! The Preston link is part through the fact that you and I met first day at Ashton on Ribble High school, and have been friends ever since, and partly the socio-political link – Preston Model and First ever ‘Social Enterprise Town.’ Resources come from, and feed back into local community; business and community support each other. And partly our faith says love your neighbour as yourself, even if the ‘neighbour’ is 80 miles away.
These lovely people of Alston Moor want our homeless, cold community to be warmer, and have something made by hand and heart, a bit more personal, individual, as they are. Also, that they will know that someone cares and believes in them.
Alston Moor is an inclusive community and involve everyone – they have a lady with dementia who knits squares, and a friend makes them into small blankets. We would love them to combine four small ones into one big one as no doubt the Preston community will make good use of them.
A huge thank you to my dearest best friend Rev Bar Nash Williams and the fabulous community of Alston Moor for their very generous donation made by hand and with love.
Shenaz Munshi – Trustee & Chair
DELIVERING ON A PROMISE
Photos at
https://prestonspromise.org.uk/gallery/
NEWS ARTICLE – LANCASHIRE LIVE
Preston’s homelessness ‘doesn’t end with Christmas’ as problem ‘ignored for the rest of the year’
“It’s certainly more evident at this time of the year and a lot of charities do help around Christmas time but then they’re sort of ignored for the rest of the year.”
By Fatima Aziz (Trainee reporter) – 11 DEC 2021
Homeless people across the county will be bracing themselves for another bleak winter, a winter which brings with it driving rain, gale force winds and plummeting temperatures – some of which we have already seen in previous weeks.
Areas around the county are seeing growing numbers of rough sleepers and people in poverty, in part due to the economic turmoil sparked by the Covid pandemic.
As a result of the sustained uncertainty and strain put on local services by the public health crisis, many charities are fast becoming one of the only viable options of support for these individuals.
One charity in Preston is cotinuing its efforts to reach out to those in need by providing essentials to ease the pressures of simply having to survive.
Preston’s Promise has worked in the city for many years and in 2018 when they first began their campaigns to help the homeless, they soon realised more could be done.
This year they worked to help locals with their ‘Warm a Heart 2021’ campaign.
Having worked closely with people in need, trustee of Preston’s Promise, Asma, says the help is not just needed at Christmas time.
“This issue is an issue that’s here for a long time and these homeless people are from all walks of life,” She said.
“Some are out on the streets and some are sofa surfing form one friend’s house to another until a friend gets sick of them- they’re not on the streets but they’ve not got anywhere to call home.
“It’s certainly more evident at this time of the year and a lot of charities do help around Christmas time but then they’re sort of ignored for the rest of the year.”
Over the weekend, the charity held a donation day where locals were able to send in items suitable for the people in need.
With the help of a local school, Frenchwood Community Primary School and their headteacher, Cath Antwis, Preston’s Promise was able to welcome many locals ready to help the charity out.
During the collection, the team managed to round up large stocks of non-perishables, hats, scarves, hygiene products, all essential in providing a helping hand to the people that need them.
The charity were able to gather enough stock to fill 30 bags for life which, in conjunction with Street Kitchen- another charity working in Preston, they distributed around the city.
But with having a lot of surplus stock, they knew they would be able to have enough to hand out over the coming months after Christmas.
“We don’t want to give everything out now, so we want to spread it out through January and February as well,” Asma said.
“We had a lot of stuff come in, the bags were full and we can only fit so much in them- we don’t want to over burden them too with having to carry all this stuff around.”
The charity were approached by a Cumbrian knitting group who generously donated ample hats, gloves, scarves and blankets all lovingly hand knitted by a group of parishioners in Alston Moor, Cumbria.
Reverend Bar Nash-Williams braved wintry conditions to deliver the gift to Preston’s homeless community.
After the restrictions of Covid this time last year putting a halt to their donation drives, the group of volunteers focused their efforts on making sure that this year they could do their bit for their community.
Knowing how hard this time of year is for most people in need, the charity was certain that they would get the packages sent out this year.
“It shows that there is someone out there thinking about them and that they’re not neglected and are in someone’s prayers,” Asma said.
“It affects mental health being alone so it’s just lifting spirits- these items give them that self dignity and helps with the costs too for some.
“At least for a few days or weeks they’ve got these essentials to keep them going- all of us, trustees and volunteers are local so it’s just about giving back to the community and making a positive impact.”
Link – https://www.lancs.live/news/lancashire-news/prestons-homelessness-doesnt-end-christmas-22421262
