£100,000 grant to help City charity fight homelessness among young people with disabilities
City YMCA London provides accommodation, training and workshops for young people aged 16-25 across London’s business ‘Square Mile’ and the neighbouring London Boroughs of Islington, Tower Hamlets and Hackney. Over the past 40 years, its accommodation, including the 114-bed Errol Street hostel in Islington, has helped more than 10,000 at-risk young people avoid homelessness. Family breakdown and domestic violence are often factors in pushing these youngsters onto the streets.
City YMCA’s Errol Street hostel is due to be closed for two years for redevelopment and, during this period, Monarch Court, a former care home in Hackney, will be refurbished and used as an interim premises. The City Bridge Trust’s grant will cover the costs of adapting six fully-accessible bedrooms in Monarch Court for young disabled people.
Gillian Bowen, Chief Executive of City YMCA London, said:
“This grant underpins our commitment to a fully-accessible hostel and will make a big difference to the lives of those faced with the double whammy of living with a disability and the challenge of being homeless in London. It makes the youngsters’ dream of independent living possible and our thanks to the City Bridge Trust for helping us realise that dream.”
Jeremy Mayhew, Chairman of City Bridge Trust, said:“Many young people with a disability are vulnerable to homelessness due to low income, poor access to jobs, and limited housing options. Over 4 decades, City YMCA London has been helping these young Londoners with stable housing and pathways to employment - so that they can grow the skills and self-confidence needed in the transition to adulthood and independent living. This grant will support the charity’s development and ensure it can continue to provide a vital service for disadvantaged and marginalised young people at an important point in their lives.”
City Bridge Trust is the grant-making arm of Bridge House Estates, whose sole trustee is the City of London Corporation. It supports London charities and provides grants totalling around £15 million annually. 2015 marks 20 years since the City Bridge Trust was created, based on the much older Bridge House Estates.
Notes to editors:
Media enquiries: Julie Zhu, Media Officer, City of London Corporation
T 020 7332 3451
E julie.zhu@cityoflondon.gov.uk
About the City of London CorporationThe City of London Corporation has three roles: we support London’s communities by working in partnership with neighbouring boroughs on economic regeneration and skills projects. The Corporation supports education - with three independent schools and three City Academies – plus a primary school and the world-renowned Guildhall School of Music and Drama. We also help look after key London heritage and green spaces including Tower Bridge, Museum of London, Barbican Arts Centre, City gardens, Hampstead Heath, Epping Forest, Burnham Beeches, and important ‘commons’ in south London. And – with its heart in London’s Square Mile - we also support and promote the ‘City’ as a world-leading financial and business hub, with outward and inward business delegations, high-profile civic events, research-driven policies and a long-term approach. See www.cityoflondon.gov.uk for much more on our uniquely diverse role, including the City of London Police, etc.
The City of London Corporation’s charity, the City Bridge Trust, makes grants totaling around £15 million annually to charitable projects across London. More information can be found at www.citybridgetrust.org.uk.
Charity Enquiries:
Appeal Director: Chris East
M 07712 585776
About City YMCA LondonCity YMCA provides a range of services designed by, and for, young people to support their progression in today’s and tomorrow’s society. Our holistic approach covers young people aged 12 to 25 where 25% have left care and 15% run-away from home. The rest are either deemed at-risk with their parents, are trying to divert from crime or have fallen upon hard times.
City YMCA has committed itself to a dynamic and bold strategy to redevelop its hostel at Errol Street. Remaining faithful to the vision of helping young people to build a future of their own choosing, the new Islington Hostel will establish a legacy for generations of young people. Further, as a result of holding firm to the vision City YMCA London will also establish a robust footprint of a new hostel in Hackney under a 15 year lease.
With 90% of the funding secure, the charity are now seeking the support of neighbours and friends across the City to raise the final £1.3m required to take the project over the starting line.
See www.cityymca.org for further information