Provides Swindon's homeless with a hot breakfast / access to outreach workers and other services.
Big Breakfast Plus (formerly known as Broadgreen Breakfast Club) provides a hot breakfast 7 days a week all year round for single homeless in Swindon, in an easily accessible central location. This provides a safe place for colleagues from partner agencies to signpost to advice and help on issues such as housing, health, drugs and alcohol abuse, mental health and benefits. It also provides a sense of dignity/normality and can often be the start for them to break the cycle of homelessness.
Why the community needs usWe do more than just cook breakfast (and provide a choice of menu). We work in partnership with other organisations and statutory agencies to offer a safe and informal environment in which outreach workers can identify new faces among the homeless community, meet our guests and build trust to enable them to identify and address underlying issues including unemployment, mental health problems and addiction as well as accommodation options, and to introduce them to / signpost appropriate support.
Our impact on the communityWe're reaching over 400 individuals every year. The majority of our male guests report that they spent the previous night rough sleeping or sofa surfing For the increasing number of women who come to us, it's over 80%. Outreach Workers from Threshold Housing Link stress the importance of the access that we provide for them to engage with highly vulnerable people living very chaotically, and who may not want to get involved. The relaxed environment at breakfast provides that opportunity.
Cooking, help in the kitchen serving, washing up, clearing away and having a cuppa with our guests. No qualification needed, but you will need your own rubber gloves!
