By Helen McCarroll, Father Hudson’s Care

Birmingham’s only year-round night shelter, Tabor House, has announced that it can now support more people experiencing homelessness as it has expanded the number of beds available.

Tabor House opened in September 2017. Run as a partnership project with iShelter, Father Hudson’s Care, Caritas Archdiocese of Birmingham, Housing Justice and others, it offers a new approach to helping homeless people – using their strengths, skills and ambitions to help them transform their lives and move into more permanent accommodation. The project is run by a small staff team and a large team of dedicated trained volunteers.

For the first six months, it offered places for six guests to ensure that this strength-based approach afforded the right support and best outcomes.

Now, thanks to the success of the service, it is expanding to nine beds. The plan is gradually to increase bed spaces over the course of the year. This way, Tabor House is able to ensure it continues to offer high quality support to its existing guests as well as helping new guests. It also enables their volunteers and staff to manage the transition.

This is a great achievement for the shelter, which, in January, saw one of its first guests move into stable employment and long term accommodation.

Guests can be referred to Tabor House by homelessness specialists at Midland Heart or SIFA Fireside.
To access support from Tabor House, contact SIFA Fireside on 0121 766 1700, or Midland Heart on 0345 602 0533 (during office hours) or 0121 303 2296 (out of hours).

To enquire about volunteering at Tabor House, please call Mairead Shaw on 0121 647 5106 or 07387 418318, or e-mail [email protected]