“The quality of the entries just takes the biscuit!” said Phil Jones, Lovell’s Head of Land and Partnerships, as he and fellow judges, TV’s George Clarke and Greggs’ CEO Roisin Currie, announced the winners of a new festive gingerbread building competition that took place at The Biscuit Factory on Tuesday (3 December): Gingerbread Street.

The Gingerbread Street competition is the first of its kind in the region, organised by Gateshead-based homelessness charity Oasis Community Housing. Local businesses, groups and schools deployed their best bakers and builders to create gingerbread houses, a school, church and even a skate park. All of the confectionary creations have been displayed alongside each other to make up Gingerbread Street, which will remain on display to visit at The Biscuit Factory until 27 December 2024.

Judges George Clarke, Greggs’ Roisin Currie and Phil Jones from Lovell, who has kindly sponsored the event alongside the Chartered Institute of Building, awarded the Community Champion Award to ‘Callerton Gingerbread Academy’, which was a group effort from Callerton Academy Year 10 Pupils, Space Architects and Morgan Sindall construction services.

Other award winners included: ‘The Courthouse’ by Ben Hoare Bell LLP (small plot); ‘Frank’s Place’ by construction group Bowmer + Kirkland (medium plot); and ‘The Evelyn Project Food Bank & Community Garden’ by Evelyn Partners financial services (large plot).

Gingerbread Street aims to raise awareness of homelessness this Christmas, and the community that is needed to make people feel they have a home. Sarah Lister, CEO of Oasis Community Housing, the charity organising the event, said:

“Ending homelessness is about more than putting a roof over someone’s head. Building community around people is at the heart of what we do, so every individual feels safe and like they belong. We wanted to bring that message to life and so, with a dusting of Christmas spirit, we have Gingerbread Street!

“We are overwhelmed by the level of creativity and commitment given by local businesses, churches and schools, as well as our incredible judges – all enabling us to continue making a life-changing difference for people facing homelessness across the region.”

The homelessness charity in partnership with George Clarke’s own charity, MOBIE (Ministry of Building, Innovation and Education), have delivered a number of school workshops across Newcastle and Gateshead encouraging young people to think about homelessness and to design the kind of shelter that may be helpful for people sleeping on the streets. Out of hundreds of entries, Sonny Abbott from Rowlands Gill Primary School was chosen as the winner for his colourful, uplifting design. Sonny’s design for a homelessness shelter has been made into a life-size model by MOBIE, which is also on display at The Biscuit Factory throughout December.

Anyone visiting Gingerbread Street can vote for their favourite biscuity building using the QR code on the miniature street signs across the exhibition. The winner of the People’s Choice Award will be announced on Oasis Community Housing’s social media channels on 20 December.

Find out more about Oasis Community Housing’s Christmas Appeal >

Over 160 footballers from 18 businesses took part in a charity football tournament to raise vital funds to support people experiencing homelessness. The Oasis Cup, homelessness charity Oasis Community Housing’s annual mixed five-a-side football tournament held at Gateshead International Stadium, raised an incredible £10,400 to support men, women and children experiencing homelessness.

View images from the day here >>>

The 22 teams who competed for the trophy comprised of players from businesses including: Zentia UK ltd, Atkins Realis, Stagecoach (Newcastle and Sunderland), Komatsu UK, Sweeney Miller Law, Naylors Gavin Black, Northeast Young Dad’s and Lads, EQUANS UK, Hilton Newcastle Gateshead, Lovell Partnerships, Karbon Homes, Gentoo Group, ISOLER, Consultiv Utilities, Bowmer+Kirkland, Callerton Kitchen and Interiors, and Amazon (MME1 and MME2).

The event also benefitted from the support of wonderful volunteers from businesses, including EQUANS UK, Gateshead College and our very own Experts by Experience group who dedicated their time to help on the day. Lunch was provided for the players courtesy of Fat Hippo.

Team awards

After a day of footballing action it was Gentoo Group who came out on top, securing victory after a nail-biting final against Karbon Homes which ended 1-0.

Josh Sutton, Gentoo Customer Voice Partner who played in Gentoo’s winning team, said “The Oasis Cup is a fantastic event. I’ve played for two years running now and love the atmosphere. The event provides a brilliant opportunity for people of all footballing abilities to take part in a competitive, fun football tournament whilst raising money for a great cause.

“At Gentoo, we are proud to be part of events like this to strengthen partnerships with other people in the housing sector and get together to raise vital funds and awareness to tackle homelessness. We support Oasis Community Housings’ mission to deliver life changing support to people who are homeless and believe everyone has a right to a safe and secure home.  

“We’re all looking forward to playing again next year in the hope we can contribute to raising further funds and retain the trophy!”

Other awards were presented on the day including the Team Spirit Award which was deservedly won by the team from Hilton Newcastle Gateshead, and the Player of the Tournament and Top Goal Scorer which were both won by Tom Hunter from the excellent Gentoo Group team.

Unfortunately, it was the team from Naylors Gavin Black who took home the trophy nobody wanted – the dreaded ‘sweaty sock’ award!

What the support means

Hazel Ditchburn, Corporate Relationships Manager at Oasis Community Housing, explained that “The Oasis Cup is always such a special event for businesses in the region to come together, and 2024’s tournament was no different.

“As well as being a great day of football and fundraising there was also a real sense community. Without the involvement of these wonderful and generous businesses we would not be able to continue supporting the men, women and young people experiencing homelessness across our projects.”

Plans are already underway for The Oasis Cup 2025 which takes place on Friday 19 September. Does your business have what it takes to take home the trophy?

Find out more and enter your team here >>>

Last week Oasis Community Housing’s Experts-by-Experience co-production group organised a Spring Lunch for people experiencing homelessness and seeking support at the charity’s Basis Gateshead homeless drop-in centre.

Members of the group made an assortment of sweet treats, quiches and pies for the lunch that was enjoyed by more than 20 people including staff and the people they support. Oasis Community’s coporate partner Komatsu UK kindly funded the ingredients and food for lunch 

One attendee who enjoyed the lunch said: ‘I didn’t expect this at all, I only came in for a shower!’

A Co-Production creation

Cal Distin, Co-Production Worker at Oasis Community Housing, said, ‘The Experts by Experience group came up with the idea of the Spring Lunch and were instrumental in organising, preparing and delivering what was such a special event.

‘Times are really tough at the moment for everyone, especially those who are experiencing homelessness. The group’s eagerness to make a real difference by providing a meal for everyone to enjoy in the drop-in is testament to their drive to have a positive impact on their community.’

As part of our Crisis Service, the Basis homeless drop-ins provide the bedrock for our North East homelessness support. Last year the drop-ins in Gateshead and Sunderland helped people rough sleeping or in housing crisis on 5,278 occasions thanks to donations from generous supporters.

Giving something back

Davey, who attended the lunch as part of the co-production group, found himself sleeping on the streets after experiencing the trauma of a relationship breakdown and the loss of his son. He then found our Basis Gateshead homeless drop-in centre where he began working with staff to get back on his feet.

Read Davey’s full story here >

Keen to support people who are in the position he once found himself in, Davey joined the charity’s co-production group last year and is a regular attendee at the group’s bi-weekly meetings.

‘The co-production group came around through some of the staff here asking people who use the service to setup a group to work towards making the service better,’ said Davey.

‘Hopefully the group is helping, alongside Oasis Community Housing, to make things better for the future.’

Eager to support people who come through the drop-in doors, Davey explained how the Spring Lunch event came about: ‘We had been discussing as a co-production group about putting a Spring Lunch on. It’s just to give something back to the community, a free lunch for people who use the Basis Gateshead drop-in.

‘Most of the people that use the drop-in wouldn’t have got anything at all for Easter, whereas they’re getting a nice little treat just to make them feel a little bit happier.

‘It’s helping people to think they’re not alone out there. That there are people there to help.’

Find out more about the Co-Production group >

With more than 300,000 people in England likely to spend Christmas experiencing some form of homelessness, North East businesses have supported the delivery of Christmas lunches for homeless drop-in centres in Gateshead and Sunderland.

Donate to support someone experiencing homelessness this Christmas >>>

Difficult times

Over the past year our Basis homeless drop-ins have been attended nearly 3,600 times. Each visit sees men and women experiencing homelessness supported by our staff as part of our crisis service. The cost-of-living crisis and the fallout from the pandemic has significantly impacted people’s ability to afford necessities like food, with fears that this situation will only get worse over winter.

Alex Laing, Head of Crisis Services, explained that “As the cost of almost everything remains high, so will demand for our services. A considerable percentage of those people who are stuggling, find themselves at risk of falling into homelessness.”

“At Oasis Community Housing we see the worth in everyone. Being able to bring some Christmas cheer to the drop-ins has been incredible. Many of the people we support wouldn’t have enjoyed a Christmas lunch this year if it wasn’t for the wonderful businesses and individuals behind them who have made this possible.”

Volunteer support

A team made up of volunteers from Connected Voice and Muckle LLP supported the lunches in Gateshead whilst volunteers from Kier Construction helped out in Sunderland.

The 40 guests, mostly rough sleepers or those facing a housing crisis, also received gifts including Greggs food vouchers and selection boxes provided by Muckle LLP, Gentoo and Sekura Group. Washington-based Simpson Group kindly donated the Turkey’s for the Christmas lunches too.

Along with the Christmas dinners for our homeless drop-in centres, we will be trying to give individuals and families across our projects in North East England, South London, and Peterborough a Christmas to remember as well.

Gifts and Christmas hampers, many kindly provided by supporters including Cash4Kids and Feeding Families, will be distributed to the people we support. The Peterborough Rotary club have also provided gifts decorations to residents at our Queen Street project In Peterborough that supports families of Ukrainian refugees.

Find out about our Giving a Home Christmas appeal >>>

Sometimes you feel the winds of change blowing in politics. Sitting in a crowded room in a hotel in Liverpool during the Labour Party Conference was just one of those moments. MPs, journalists, activists, charity workers, those who had experienced homelessness, all came together to talk about the need for trauma-informed support for all those experiencing homelessness.

What does that mean? It would mean that everyone working alongside those who are facing homelessness would be trained to understand people’s traumas. That means that small things that can act as triggers for people can be avoided, the trauma of homelessness reduced.

This meeting was not the beginning of a journey. We have been journeying with people and with this aim for some time. But it’s an exciting stop on the route. There was standing room only as this subject was discussed. I was delighted by the energy in the room, the commitment to seeing change come about.

You have been part of that journey and you still are. As we step very definitely into autumn and head for Christmas, we think more and more of those who live with homelessness. As with trauma-informed support, small things can make a difference. So we are delighted to have launched our Giving a Home appeal again this winter. It has made a huge difference to people’s lives in the past and we know it will again this year.

Just £6.20 enables someone to use public transport to get to one of our drop-in centres. £15.11 could help them receive help at a drop-in centre. It’s remarkable what a difference your donations can and do make every single day.

The cost-of-living crisis faces us all, but if you are able to give just a little, we know that it will go a very long way. In donating you’ll be journeying with people that you may never meet, enabling them to take the next steps on the road to a different future.

We’ll continue to travel with politicians, activists, charity workers and all those who want to bring change to people’s lives. Together, we can make a difference.

David Smith, CEO Oasis Community Housing.

On 13 October 2023, Philip Le Marquand, a supporter of Oasis Community Housing from Gateshead, completed a 385-mile walk from Peckham in South London to Gateshead in the North East of England raising £1,510 for people experiencing homelessness.

After setting off from our No.3 project nearly five weeks ago, Philip arrived at our Basis Gateshead Homeless drop-in to a warm welcome from our project staff, friends and family.

Philip plotted his route using the online walking tool SlowWays which encourages users to walk unused footpaths and engage in more leisurely walks. Often this doesn’t mean walking the fastest route.

Support all the way

At the beginning and end of his journey Philip received an in-person warm send–off and welcome from our project staff, but for much of the walk Philip was physically alone. Philip kept his spirits high by sending regular updates to, and engaging with, the small community of people who had a keen interest in the walk.

Philip reflected on the support he received throughout the walk: ‘When I thought about it, I hadn’t realised that this was a wonderful thing. It was when I started in Peckham, then I suddenly realised that how people thought this was such a great thing to do. I was thinking it was just a walk.

‘It’s been marvellous to get the support all the way through.’

Overcoming challenges

While there were several positive moments during the journey, the walk was far from easy. For Philip, it was during the first week and a half when he faced his most significant obstacles.

He explained: ‘I think the most challenging part of the walk was at the beginning with the heat wave and I’d got the wrong shoes to start with.’

‘Between the hot weather and the blisters, that was the lowest point and the most challenging point.’

Philip says he had to push through on the more difficult days: ‘What got me through was the knowledge that I was doing it for Oasis Community Housing. The whole point of it was to raise people’s awareness of homelessness.

‘It’s such a brilliant organisation. I mean, every time I see and visit a project I am blown away by the commitment, the professionalism and the dedication of all the workers.

‘It feels to me like it’s the organisation which looks after the person, rather than just providing a house.’

As well as providing temporary and supported accommodation, Oasis Community Housing also works with people through their trauma offering support for men and women who have experienced domestic abuse, crisis support, among a plethora of other services aimed at relieving the burden of homelessness.

Completing the challenge

Philip arrived at our Basis Gateshead homeless drop-in project, where staff had organised a welcome party to congratulate him on his incredible achievement. Through completing this extraordinary challenge Philip raised £1,510 to support people experiencing homelessness.

Are you inspired by Philip’s challenge? Why not take on your own fundraising challenge? Whatever you’re thinking of doing we can support you. Get in touch with our Individuals and Communities Fundraising Manager, Joanne Armstrong, at joanne.armstrong@oasiscommunityhousing.org

Leading developer has raised £10,863 at its inaugural annual charity golf day for North East homelessness charity, Oasis Community Housing.

The day welcomed 76 attendees, from employees to sub-contractors, who tee-ed off to raise awareness about homelessness across England and vital funds for the charity, which relies on donations to carry on the fantastic work it does across the region.

Launched nearly 40 years ago, Oasis Community Housing is a Christian charity that provides housing and support for people across the north east of England and south London. It addresses both immediate need and the root causes of homelessness through support which also includes helping to build confidence and feelings of self-worth and supporting women with young children who are experiencing domestic abuse.  

Paul Devaney, regional managing director for Lovell North East, said: “This was our first golf day, and what a fantastic day it was. It was great to see so many of our sub-contractors come and show their support for a cause which does such excellent work across the north east community. It was brilliant to see so much talent out there on the golf course too, with huge congratulations to DJR Smith who were victorious on the day.

“We chose Oasis Community Housing as our charity of the year earlier this year and our recent golf day marks just one of the many events we have in the pipeline to help support the cause. From raffles to sports challenges, there’s still so much more to come as we continue our mission to help raise as much money as we can for the cause over the coming months.”

Throughout the day lots of generous prizes were also donated from businesses across the region and placed into a raffle followed by an auction and family friendly BBQ.

David Smith, chief executive at Oasis Community Housing added “We’d like to thank everyone who attended the Lovell North East golf day and those who donated to such a special cause. Our aim is to the transform communities by creating access to housing, addressing homelessness and journeying with people as they fulfil their God-given potential.

“We had such a lovely day. The funds raised will make a massive difference to the work we do. Our partnership with Lovell is hugely valuable to us and we are so excited to see what the future holds.”

For more information about Oasis Community Housing, visit https://www.oasiscommunityhousing.org/

To find out more about Lovell Partnerships, visit: https://corporate.lovell.co.uk/

Last Sunday, Homelessness Sunday, Oasis Community Housing hosted a fringe event at the Labour Party conference 2023 in Liverpool to discuss research and recommendations surrounding the link between trauma and homelessness.

David Smith, CEO of Oasis Community Housing was joined on the panel by Kim McGuinness, Police and Crime Commissioner; Natalie Robson, former resident of one of our supported housing projects; Mike Amesbury MP, Shadow Minister for Building Safety and Homelessness; and Paula Barker MP, Shadow Minister for Devolution and the English Regions.

One of the academics involved in the research, Adele Irving from Salford University, attended the event along with representatives from Homeless Link and around 40 other attendees.

Trauma, homelessness and policy change

The event began with David Smith introducing the research Oasis Community Housing commissioned from Northumbria University, which found that 94% of people experiencing homelessness have experienced trauma.

Following a short video, each of the panellists spoke, with Shadow Ministers Paula Barker MP and Mike Amesbury MP speaking first. Paula Barker explained that she believed a ‘trauma-informed approach must be the bedrock of delivering on this agenda (of tackling homelessness).’

Mike Amesbury MP recently became the Shadow Minister for Building Safety and Homelessness, after taking on the role that was previously held by Paula Barker MP.

Committing to continuing Paula’s work thus far, Mike spoke more broadly about homelessness and access to housing, insisting that, ‘we need to make genuinely affordable housing and supported accommodation, and temporary accommodation should be temporary.’

There was an emphasis from both Paula and Mike that there was a clear need to ‘break the cycle of homelessness’ by ensuring adequate attention is paid to tackling trauma.

The Police and Crime Commissioner, Kim McGuiness, highlighted the need for prevention and treating trauma on a case-by-case basis. She suggested that, ‘we need to look through the lens of people’s experiences’ when supporting people experiencing homelessness.

‘You can understand the trauma, but then ask the question: how do we treat this on an individual level – we have to take into consideration people’s experiences.’

Natalie’s story

A key member of the panel was Natalie Robson, who is a former resident at one of Oasis Community Housing’s supported accommodation projects and is now a volunteer chaplain at the project that once supported her. Natalie shared her experience of homelessness during the event.

After her parents split up, when she was aged just 14, Natalie found herself with no place to call home. She explained: ‘My parents couldn’t agree on living arrangements so we would put all of our stuff in bin bags and move from week to week… Relationships broke down and at 19 years old I had lived with multiple different friends and family members, but I always wanted to go back to my mum.’

‘I suffered from poor mental health. Trauma is complex, and I blamed myself for that period of time.’

After moving on from one of Oasis Community Housing’s supported accommodation Natalie went to university and began her life after homelessness. It wasn’t until Natalie experienced another traumatic episode later in life when she realised it was actually the initial trauma of being homeless that she needed support with the most.

Natalie’s story placed the discussion in the room around trauma and homelessness into context, and reiterated the need to recognise trauma and the need to support those who have experienced it.

Support us in pushing the government to do more to tackle trauma. You can do this by writing to your MP to bring attention to homelessness in your community

Use our ‘writing to your MP guide’ here >>>

The Right Reverend Mark Bryant, former Bishop of Jarrow:

I met Danny just before nine o’clock one spring morning as we were both waiting for the Basis Drop-in to open. “I’m buzzing” he greeted me “I’m getting my key at eleven o’clock and I am buzzing”. This was the day Danny was at last to get a key to his own place and he had brought a couple of shirts to get them washed so that everything could be right before he moved into his new place.

All I could do was share in his joy and excitement – and be somewhat relieved that I knew that Oasis Community Housing staff would be around to support him – on this new adventure. My joy and excitement was that here was somebody who was just getting ready for a new adventure and for whom the future at last looked good and full of promise. The words of Jesus flashed into my mind “I came that they might have life and have life in all its fullness” (John 10.10).

It felt that at last Danny was getting a new glimpse of that fullness and richness of life which, as Christians, we believe God desires for every single one of his children. What I have learned over the years is that homelessness is not the real issue for many who find their way to Oasis Community Housing. Many of those who come are homeless because they have experienced often many traumas in their lives.

Early life has often been difficult and that has made it difficult as they grow up to form good and healthy relationships. It has meant that life has sometimes become unhelpfully chaotic and sometimes the pain of just being alive has been so great that the only way to dull the pain is through alcohol or other drugs.

Funding or holding down a tenancy has become simply impossible.

Circumstances have made it harder for them to glimpse that fullness of life which may have come a little more easily to others. That means that Homelessness Sunday is about far more than a concern for people who find themselves sleeping rough or living in totally inadequate housing, it is about enabling people to start to discover something of that fullness of life that is God’s desire for every member of the human family.

Over the summer the Archbishop of York – somewhat misrepresented in the secular press – spoke of the importance of the word “our” in the “Our Father” prayer. He was reminding us that God is the father of all of us. There is nobody to whom God is not father, which means, of course, that all human beings are our brothers and sisters in God. Homelessness Sunday reminds us that those who find themselves homeless or vulnerably housed are our brothers and sisters and that therefore we cannot ignore what is happening to them nor what has happened to them.

Homelessness Sunday asks us what we can do not just about people who find themselves homeless but also about a society which makes it so difficult for so many to even glimpse fullness of life as they grow up. www.oasiscommunityhousing.org

It would be wonderful if churches up and down the country could mark Homelessness Sunday as a time to pause and reflect and ask what God is asking of us who love in a nation where the fullness of life that God desires for everyone is so difficult to find. It is a time too to be thankful for Danny and the many others who are starting to discover what it can really be like.

Find out more about how you and your church can help here >>>