Echo £2,000 boost for county town homeless

Dorchester Poverty Action Group has been awarded £2,000 for its new meal ticket scheme, from the Gannett Foundation.

The foundation is the charity set up by Gannett, the parent firm of Newsquest which publishes the Echo.

The action group, which helps families and individuals in crisis, is setting up a drop-in centre in the town to provide a one-stop-shop for rough sleepers.

The Hub, as it will be called, will provide information and advice, meal tickets and a place to shower for vulnerable people in the county town.

Previously people would have to go to a number of places spread around the town centre to get help and take a shower.

Now the group, which is made up of the United Church in South Street and the Salvation Army, as well as interested individuals, is waiting for planning permission to create the Hub.

They are also raising cash to pay for the building work and appealing for people to help make the tea and deal with the people who come into the centre.

Chairman Dr Margaret Barker said: "It's such a huge boost, as we want the Hub to run independently of the poverty action group and this money means that we won't have to dip into our funds for the meal tickets.

"The work we do is predominantly helping people in crisis and we need to keep that separate from the work with rough sleepers.

"The meal ticket scheme is marvellous - Dennis Perrott from the Top o' Town caf gives people a hot meal and a drink for a £3 meal voucher and he hasn't changed the price in eight years.

"He is terribly good with the people who come in and lets them stay there as long as they like."

Because of the need for planning permission the group has not been able to open the Hub as early as it wanted and now Dr Barker is hoping to get it up and running by September.

She added: "We are still trying to raise money for the building work but we now have enough to keep it running.

"We really wanted to pull all the work people are doing around the town together, so that the rough sleepers know where they are and the public knows where they are."

Action to help the people who need it the most

DORCHESTER Poverty Action Group has been quietly helping families in crisis for years after identifying that people in rural areas can often fall through the net into financial difficulties.

From people on a variable income to people with children who just need a break, the group has been able to help in all kinds of ways.

It may help with a garage bill if someone can't get to work when their car has broken down, or it may find someone somewhere to live if they have had problems with housing.

Dr Barker said: "Since the Working Families Tax Credit came in we have seen the nature of the problems around the Dorchester area change.

"There are fewer families coming to us in crisis so we are able to help more vulnerable or older individuals, which I am very pleased about.

"And there are now fewer requests for help with children, which is good."

The group gives out supermarket tokens at Christmas and grants for people who have been referred to them by social workers, health visitors, the clergy and the Citizens' Advice Bureau.

It also provides a wealth of knowledge about what to do in a crisis and links with the First Dorset Credit Union to offer savings and loan schemes.

Some people, particularly farm workers, are on a variable wage, which means that some weeks they get paid above the level for income support, other weeks they get nothing at all and many people find it difficult to fill out the long forms for benefits every week.

Another project of the Dorchester Poverty Action Group is Second Chance Furniture, which offers people who are struggling financially the opportunity to buy good quality second-hand furniture at low prices.

To make a donation, or for information on the Dorchester Poverty Action Group, call Dr Barker on (01305) 260959.

For information on the Credit Union, contact (01305) 257460.

Second Chance Furniture is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, from 10am to 4pm. Contact (01305) 766621.

The helpline for people in farming facing financial problems is The Addington Fund on (02476) 858345.