Housing Justice UNLEASH email bulletin August 2007

Hello and welcome to this Housing Justice UNLEASH news update. Plans for the Autumn are well advanced so please take a few minutes to scroll down for info about events and training happening from September.

Our Open Space Conference last week "Action on Homelessness: hand out or a hand up?" enabled a wide and interesting set of discussions. We tackled an enormous range of issues on the day, from appropriate services for non English-speakers, to Faith vs. risk assessment, to the particular difficulties faced by women who find themselves homeless. Look out for the report early in September.

About this bulletin + subscribe/unsubscribe
This monthly news and info bulletin aims to be a worthwhile 5 minute read, with links to further information and resources for people working in or concerned about housing and homelessness in London. It is prepared particularly with these groups in mind: churches and other faith groups, individuals working in housing or homelessness agencies, people who are or have been homeless, and anyone with an interest in housing, homelessness or related issues. It goes out to almost 1200 people each month so if you have news, a need or an event you’d like to tell others about drop me a line. Also comments or feedback on any item are always welcome.

If your colleagues or friends might be interested please forward to them. If you have received a copy in this way and you would like your own let me know. I generally add people to the mailing list as I go along but if you would rather not receive this email please let me know anytime. Thanks

Call Alastair Murray 020 7723 7273 x.242

Email a.murray@housingjustice.org.uk

Privacy/Data protection: I will not share your email or personal details with other people or organisations without your permission, and this email is always sent blind copy to prevent spam and viruses.

Scroll down for

EVENTS
10 Feet Away International Festival 2007 This weekend 26th - 29th July 2007
Home, Homelessness and Community Saturday 29th September
Training events this Autumn for Poverty and Homelessness Action Week 2008: Opening Doors, Opening Hearts
*NEW* Homelessness Prayer Meeting Thursday 27 September

INTERVIEW
Christian Today

TRAINING
Housing Justice UNLEASH Volunteers Training new dates
Advanced Professional Certificate in Working with Homeless People new course starting in September
Homelessness Training Unit new course dates
Asylum Support Appeals Project free training on “Support options for failed asylum seekers”

Other recommended email bulletins + websites

Off the Streets and into Work

National Coalition for Independent Action

Wired up

Network 2012

Church Action on Poverty

And finally…

Events
10 Feet Away International Festival 2007 This weekend 26th - 29th July 2007
Ten Feet Away International is the inclusive and participatory arts festival for homeless and ex-homeless people. Now in its 3rd year it is bigger and better than ever and definitely offers something for everyone. The main sites this year are St. John’s Church Waterloo (by the IMAX cinema), and Novas Contemporary Urban Centre 73-81 Southwark Bridge Road London SE1 0NQ.
Lots of info, news and blog on the website http://tenfeetaway.wordpress.com/134/

Home, Homelessness and Community Saturday 29th September
This one day workshop aims to explore the meaning of home and community through in-depth consideration of the experience and the meaning of homelessness and ‘unhoused’ states of mind.
With: Christopher Scanlon, Group Analyst and Organisational Consultant; Brother John Mayhead, Benedictine Monk, Monastery of Christ Our Saviour; John Adlam, Psychotherapist, Henderson Hospital Services; Dr Jo-Anne Carlyle, Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Psychotherapist and Organisational Consultant, Chair
Date Saturday 29th September 2007: 10.00 – 5.00 pm (9.30 for tea, coffee and registration)
Venue Turvey Abbey, Nr. Bedford
Cost £40 including lunch (some bursaries are available for the unwaged)
For further details please email c.scanlon@btinternet.com

Poverty and Homelessness Action Week 2008: Opening Doors, Opening Hearts 27 January to 3 February 2008
See www.homelessness-sunday.org.uk
Opening Doors, Opening Hearts is about opening hearts to hear the stories people have to tell about being homeless, badly housed, and poor. It offers opportunities for dialogue, springing from the conviction that together we can open doors to a better housed, better paid and more just society.

In 2008 Homelessness Sunday and Poverty Action Sunday are only one week apart. Poverty and Homelessness Action Week is your chance to make a difference. The Opening Doors, Opening Hearts resource pack contains all the materials that are needed for Homelessness Sunday, for Poverty Action Sunday, and to organise events during the Action Week.
Our target is for at least 100 events to take place in communities all over the UK. Use the materials to pray, reflect and act on homelessness and poverty; to encourage your church to get involved; to uncover the reality of hidden poverty or homelessness in your community; to celebrate what is already going on locally; to work with others.

Training events in London this Autumn
Thurs 4 Oct 10.30am - 2pm URC Church House, Tavistock Place, London
Contact Geoff Duncan, North Thames URC Synod 020 7799 5000 mailto:geoffrey.duncan@urc10.orgLondon
Tues 30 Oct St John's, Waterloo (part of the Housing Justice AGM)
Contact Judith Maizel-Long, Housing Justice 020 7723 7273 x. 254 mailto:j.maizel-long@housingjustice.org.ukLondon
Monday 5 Nov 12.30-2.30pm Trinity House, Borough High St. SE1 1HW
Contact Terry Drummond, Southwark Diocese 020 8769 3256 mailto:terry.drummond@southwark.anglican.org

Also on the same theme, as part of the Micah Challenge UK www.micahchallenge.org.uk Tearfund and Shaftesbury have developed a course for churches to help them discover how tackling poverty and pursuing justice, both locally and globally, are at the heart of Christian mission. It is called Just People: the Micah course.
Saturday 15 September 10am-4pm St Mark’s, Battersea Rise, SW11 1EJ
£10/person to be paid on the day (lunch included)
Contact Jill Clark at Shaftesbury 0207 452 2018 email jclark@shaftesburysociety.org

Poverty and Homelessness Action Week is organised by Church Action on Poverty, Housing Justice, Scottish Churches Housing Action, the Church Urban Fund and others.

Homelessness Prayer Meeting Thursday 27 September
Following our Open Space Conference: hand out or a hand up? last week (of which more soon..) there was a call for a regular prayer meeting for Christians involved in homelessness action in London. So here it is: the date of the first one for your diaries!

The format is likely to be quite simple, with a short introductory word, space to share any particular prayer needs and requests, and opportunity to spend time seeking God with each other in prayer and reflection. All are welcome.

Venue Housing Justice 209 Old Marylebone Road London NW1 5QT
Date Thursday 27 September at 6.00pm
If you would like to come please RSVP mailto:a.murray@housingjustice.org.uk

Interview
Christian Today
Maria Mackay from Christian Today interviewed me at our Open Space Conference last week.
To read the interview follow this link www.christiantoday.com/article/homelessness.and.hope/11832.htm

Training
Housing Justice UNLEASH Volunteers Training Autumn dates
The Basic Training day for volunteers covers: Overview of homelessness including local authority tests, role of the voluntary sector etc, Mental Health Awareness, Drugs and Alcohol Awareness and Dealing with Conflict.

The Basic Training day is very popular and is nearly always oversubscribed.

The other training days provide more in-depth training on Mental Health and Drugs and Alcohol Awareness and are particularly suitable for volunteers with some experience or for those who have done the introductory Basic Training day.

Places are free to volunteers in Housing Justice member organisations, or individual members.

All training days runs from 10.00-4.00pm.

Saturday September 8th Basic Training
Venue: Chelsea Methodist Church Kings Rd SW3 5TX

Saturday September 22nd Drugs and Alcohol
Venue: Chelsea Methodist Church Kings Rd SW3 5TX

Thursday October 4th Basic Training
Venue: Emmanuelle Church, Marsham St. Westminster SW1 3DW

Saturday October 27th Mental Health Awareness
South London Mission, 256 Bermondsey Street SE1 3DW

Saturday November 17th Basic Training
All Saints Church Carnegie St London N1 9QW

Please circulate this information widely, to volunteers or anyone who may be interested. If you or your volunteers would like to book places on any of these dates email me or Ellen for further info and a booking form -
e.byrne@housingjustice.org.uk

Advanced Professional Certificate in Working with Homeless People new course starting in September
This is a new course being piloted at YMCA George Williams College
Email me for further details or contact Mike Seal (Senior Lecturer) on 0207 540 4913 or mailto:mike@seal1.freeserve.co.uk

Homelessness Training Unit new course dates
Specialist mental health and other training for people working in homelessness
www.homelesstraining.slam.nhs.uk/Courses/tabid/152/Default.aspx

Asylum Support Appeals Project free training on “Support options for failed asylum seekers”
This training session looks at basic information on housing and welfare support available for some failed asylum seekers (such as section 4 support and community care) and explains who is able to get it. The training is available free to Refugee Community Organisations and other voluntary sector organisations working with destitute asylum seekers. We ask all the organisations which benefit from our training to become members. Membership is free.
Date 15th October 2007
Time 10am to 1pm
Venue Friends Meeting House, Euston
Contact Eiri Ohtani, Co-ordinator mailto:eiri@asaproject.org.uk
Asylum Support Appeals Project (ASAP)
Tel - 020 8684 5873
Cornerstone House, 14 Willis Road, Croydon CR0 2XX
www.asaproject.org.uk

other recommended email bulletins + websites
Off the Streets and into Work
OSW produce a regular bulletin with info on training, enterprise, volunteering, inclusion, and other help available for people to find work. The most recent edition has info about a benefit calculator designed to help people work out if they would be better off in work.
If you are interested in the benefit calculator which is currently in a pilot testing phase e-mail Kate Bowgett mailto:katebowgett@osw.org.uk
To subscribe to the OSW bulletin contact Michael Fothergill on 020 7089 2732, or mailto:michaelfothergill@osw.org.uk or see www.osw.org.uk/

National Coalition for Independent Action
The Coalition is a new alliance of organisations and individuals who are concerned about the erosion of independence taking place in the UK Voluntary and Community Sectors (VCS). This is from their website: "We believe that the capacity of the VCS to take independent action, to pursue divergent interests, and to become actively involved in dissent is in jeopardy. This threat to independent action will, if unchallenged, undermine our civil society, our political health, and the capacity of communities to get what they need for themselves."

To support or subscribe to their regular newsletter email Andy indyaction@yahoo.co.uk or see www.independentaction.net/

Wired up
A very useful monthly email with sections on funding, training and events, resources and voice from CUFX, the Shaftesbury Society & Tearfund. To subscribe email wiredup@shaftesburysociety.org

Network 2012
A business and social networking site for the 21st century, offering a long list of members benefits including:
A warm, fun and friendly Business Networking Community and a FREE weekly newsletter with guest writers, lively debates, information that will help you grow your business, funding and grants news, information on coaching, healthy lifestyles, updates on "what's hot and what's not", in the Third Sector, articles from YOU and the Community about what you are doing to grow your business, ethical topics about the environment and business.

In our start up phase we are pleased to offer all new members a free trial. www.network2012.net/community/

Church Action on Poverty
Housing Justice partners in Poverty and Homelessness Action Week
www.church-poverty.org.uk

And finally…items that don't fit anywhere else + quotation of the month
Last Monday Club I'm away on annual leave from this Friday to August 22nd, but the Last Monday Club - a music evening I help to organise in Kings Cross once a month - will still be going ahead. For details see myspace - www.myspace.com/guitarfeverduo

New Email Format coming soon From the end of next month we will be using a new e-newsletter provider to distribute this newsletter. I'm just putting the final touches to the snazzy new format, to be unveiled at the end of August/beginning of September...

Quotation of the month: "The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried."
G.K. Chesterton

best wishes,

Alastair Murray
Coordinator
Housing Justice UNLEASH