Charity Crisis hopes to help make Newcastle the first city in Britain to eliminate homelessness, by 2022 — but that task seems daunting as homelessness is on the rise.  According to a recent Shelter report, at least 320,000 people are homeless and 726 people died homeless in England and Wales in 2018 (a 22% rise from 2017). 

It’s a subject close to the heart of Jesmond residents — in a recent JesmondLocal poll, 22% thought homelessness should be a major issue in this month’s general election. To find out more, JesmondLocal is beginning a series of features about local people working to help people who find themselves homeless.

Jesmond House on Clayton Road works closely with Newcastle City Council and although it says it is not tackling homelessness directly, the work it does is key to keeping people off the streets. With a total of 84 rooms, it provides a safe space and three meals a day for vulnerable people.

“We have all sorts, not just one type of person,” says Peter Allen, general manger of Jesmond House. “People from overseas, refugees, people who have been trafficked, all sorts.”

Often the council needs a safe place to send people in urgent need and Jesmond House provides that. “Through our partnership with the city council, two of our rooms are 24 hour, emergency B&B, so if someone has been trafficked for example they send them to us. The council has just renewed that contract for another six months, so it can use it 24/7. If it’s 3 o’clock in the morning, it doesn’t matter, those rooms are always there.”

Residents at Jesmond House can stay as long as they want, but the goal is to move them into their own place. However for many this is challenging. “A lot of people come here and then get stuck a little bit,” says Janet Bates, the house manger. “We’ve had somebody here for 24 years.”

This view is echoed by Allen: “They can get very comfortable — they don’t have to worry about other bills, they know where their food is coming from, so it’s an easier option for some people. It gives us much more satisfaction knowing when people have come in, used us to settle down and then can progress to getting their own place.”

One way Jesmond House is addressing this issue is bringing in people from Crisis to teach the residents how to become more independent “They show them how to manage their money, how to pay their bills on time, look after a home and how to cope with looking after yourself,” says Bates.

Mark, also known as “DJ Sparky” has been a resident at Jesmond House for the last two years after spending four nights on the streets. He speaks about a difficult divorce, the tragedy of a child passing away and eventually losing his home but stresses that Jesmond House has provided him with the safe space and support he needed to find his feet and he is looking forward to getting his own place

Bates says that Mark takes it upon himself to look out for others staying at the shelter. “He’s the one they all nominated to be their spokesperson,” she says.

Mark spends much of his time entertaining the other residents with his music — he says he often has to remind them that the noise curfew doesn’t come into force until 10pm.

Homelessness takes an emotional toll, and not just on those who find themselves on the street but for those working in a supporting role too. “Janet’s got a good heart, she wants to make sure everybody’s alright, but you’re never gonna save all of them,” says Allen. “It’s tough to learn that.”

“I have had some sleepless nights over having to make people leave because of their behaviour,” admits Bates. “It’s hard and not something you can just leave at work.”

You can help support Jesmond House by donating clothing, which can be dropped off at the shelter. If you see someone sleeping rough, Chris Lincoln from Street Pastors, advises that “the best thing to do is to register them on Streetlink” which will allow the local services to connect with them.