Emmaus Merseyside receives £3,000 from the North West Housing Conference

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Provided By: Brabners

Emmaus Merseyside has received a donation of £3,000 from the organisers of the North West Housing Conference, law firm Brabners and accountants and business advisors, Mitchell Charlesworth.

Emmaus Merseyside offers homeless people companionship, a place to live and work, and an opportunity to integrate back into mainstream society. There are currently 25 Emmaus communities across the UK, providing a home and meaningful work to around 623 formerly homeless people. Emmaus Merseyside is working to open an Emmaus community which will provide a home, as well as education, training and work to people who have experienced homelessness.

The donation came from profits raised by the conference and will be the first contribution to Emmaus Merseyside’s “Sponsor a Bed” campaign which will raise funds for working capital until their retail superstore generates sufficient income for the organisation to be sustainable in the longer term.

Alistair Fletcher, Partner at Brabners and head of one of the largest specialist housing and regeneration legal teams in the North West, commented: We are very pleased to have this opportunity to support Emmaus Merseyside and the unique service it will provide to local homeless people as it combines the provision of a shared home with the support, training and work that the “companions” need to return to normal life. It is great to see the residential facility nearing completion and the retail superstore already fully operational.”

Mitchell Charlesworth Partner and social housing specialist Paul Wainwright added: “Having visited the new site being developed by Emmaus Merseyside it is obvious that the services provided will be a tremendous addition to the area and we are pleased to have been able to help such a local charity providing much needed facilities.”

Nigel Mellor, chair of Emmaus Merseyside, said: “We really appreciate the contribution from the North West Housing Conference since it gets our “Sponsor a Bed” campaign off to a great start. There are several ways to back the campaign: making a financial contribution, donating furniture/household goods for sale in our superstore or offering other in-kind support. Our thanks to all those in the housing movement for their support.”

The North West Housing Conference was held towards the end of 2014 at Liverpool BT Convention Centre and attracted over 180 delegates from across the UK to hear from a range of experts who examined the economic realities facing the sector and considered the impact of spending cuts. The conference was chaired by Simon Nunn, Assistant Director of External Affairs and Members Relations at the National Housing Federation and keynote speakers included Ashwin Kumar, Director of Liverpool Economics, Professor Duncan Maclennan, Director of Scottish Cities Knowledge Centre and Centre for Housing Research at University of St Andrews, Bill Davies, Research Fellow at the Institute of Public Policy Research, Dr Michael Birkett, Group Chief Executive of the Regenda Group and Julie Fadden, Chief Executive of South Liverpool Homes.

Social housing specialists also presented a series of workshops, offering practical advice on a range of topics specific to the sector including governance, housing management, risk and regulation.

Brabners and Mitchell Charlesworth hosted the conference with support from partners – Liverpool Mutual Homes, Plus Dane Group, The Riverside Group, Symphony Housing Group, The Regenda Group and Your Housing Group – and sponsors CDP Print Management and Procure Plus.

The thirteenth North West Housing Conference will take place again at Liverpool’s BT Convention Centre on Thursday October 15 2015.