Homeless Action in Barnet (HAB):
HAB in Finchley is a day centre, managed by Olamide Adetunji.
Its Winter Night Shelter (WNS) is managed by Marcin Nocek.
Daily life:
WNS accommodates 15 regular clients and 2 emergency clients all together.
The day centre drop-in hours are between 9:00 -12:30, for people at risk of homelessness, or experiencing it. At the day center, they offer free Wi-Fi, food/packed lunches, funded through donations, and places to sit and talk.
Nocek said that ‘some of the best conversations you can have is with the clients.’
Their night shelter is open between 19:00-8:30, from 28 October- 21 April.
Essentials they provide:
The day shelter puts together big canvas military bags of essentials.
The bag holds: a sleeping bag, an inflatable mattress and a pillow.
They also have two sheds with essentials, one shed has donated clothes- for clients visiting the day center- and the other holds the WNS equipment, like bedding sets.
They also have showers and a laundry room.
Challenges they face:
Nocek says that some problems they face are with the ‘night shelter, and lack of younger volunteers’, as many volunteers are elderly.
The venues are also a problem.
WNS runs on a 7-day rotation, from 7 different locations made up of churches and synagogues.
Therefore, clients take complicated routes.
HAB has trouble finding venues for next year, as in total, they need 21 communities to offer a space for the WNS to take place, but only 18 communities have so far.
Another issue is the lack of funding.
The travel costs are HAB’s biggest expense as clients travel to the venues using public transport.
Furthermore, HAB’s WNS volunteers transfer the essentials the clients need for the night- between the different venues.
Motivations behind the HAB workers, and volunteers:
They’re dedicated to helping house the inspiring, resilient clients, who come to them for help.
Nocek said, ‘I believe the current national housing situation is unstable.’
Furthermore, Nocek told me that ‘many people believe homelessness is caused by substance misuse, whereas some cases of homelessness can be caused by family or relationship breakups.’
‘We must be aware that anyone can be homeless, never mind who you are- Nocek.’
Successes:
HAB sheltered and housed a woman who was homeless for 20 years.
Last year, they housed 90% of the 47 clients, the other 10% are ongoing and they continue to work with the clients to get the right paperwork and housing.
They help people rebuild their lives.
An anonymous client said, ‘it was the best and worst experience of my life.’
‘Best’ as he was able to receive the help he needed and ‘worst’ because of his prior situation.
How to help:
On the HAB website, they except donations.
Nocek told me there’s no limit to donations, but the recommended minimum donation is £5.
Furthermore, they accept clothing donations and food donations
They strongly encourage more people to volunteer.
Overall, they want to build a stronger community and raise awareness.
For more information check: https://www.habcentre.org/
