Homeless shelter to stay open after funds secured

FUNDING has been secured to keep a Bath homeless shelter open for another year, after fears that budget cuts at Bath and North East Somerset Council could hit the charity that runs it.

Local charity Julian House’s Manvers Street hostel has provided emergency short-term accommodation for rough sleepers in Bath for 35 years.

But the future of the hostel was thrown into doubt after Bath and North East Somerset Council said it would have to make cuts to the funding it gives to local charities, with the hostel among the services at risk.

But now Julian House has been told that none of its services will be hit by the cuts in the next financial year, which begins on April 6.

The charity’s strategic partnerships director Roanne Wootten, inset, said: “We are obviously thrilled to hear that we fill not face cuts from April, and we are hugely grateful for grants from the government’s Community

Organisations Cost of Living Fund and Garfield Weston Foundation which, together with council funding and generous donations from the public, will help us to keep our doors open this year.

“Our focus now is on continuing to deliver an excellent service for the vulnerable local people who we support and securing the future of the hostel beyond 2025.

“Demand for our services is higher than ever, and we are determined to reach as many people as we can in Bath and across the South West for years to come.”

But the charity is still facing coming to the end of its lease with Manvers Street Baptist Church, underneath which the hostel is based. It is set to end in April 2026 and no alternative site has yet been found.

Cuts to council funding could also still happen next year. The council had originally planned to cut £802,000 from its community support contracts – the funding it gives charities to support the most vulnerable in the district – in April.

After warnings from charities and people experiencing homelessness in Bath, the council agreed to spread this over the 2024/25 and 2025/26 financial years. Mark Elliott, the council cabinet member for resources, said: “We are proud to work closely with Julian House and value the vital support they provide for vulnerable residents. I am committed to working with our third sector partners, including Julian House, so we can review contracts and make changes in a way that avoids a ‘cliff-edge’ for organisations and prevents people calling on council-run services.

“We listened to feedback from partners and have phased savings over a two-year period. I know this approach has been welcomed and I look forward to collaborating with partners on this in the coming months.”

The charity said that the council was also supporting it with the challenge to find a new site for the hostel.

Rough sleeping has increased by 25% in Bath over the last year, with the government’s rough sleeper count showing that 15 people were sleeping on the city’s streets on a single night in autumn 2023, compared to 12 in 2022.

Meanwhile, Julian House said that the Manvers Street hostel had helped 100 people to get off the street and into more secure independent living over the past year.