A thank you message from Launchpad

Following a nationwide effort to provide emergency accommodation to anyone who is homeless during the COVID-19 outbreak, we have been working closely with Reading Borough Council to move homeless individuals, currently living in Reading's hotels and B&Bs, into our supported housing - so they have a safe and stable home, an allocated support worker and a support plan to get them back on their feet. We have housed a total of 18 people who were in emergency accommodation to date and will continue to work furiously to get more people housed over the coming weeks and months. One of those individuals is an army veteran named Craig.

During his last tour in the army, 18 of his friends were killed, which resulted in Craig living with PTSD. He didn’t feel like he could turn to anyone for help or support managing his mental health, and so turned to alcohol to numb the anxiety. When his alcohol use got out of control, he found himself sleeping rough in the middle of the COVID-19 outbreak. Craig was placed in an emergency B&B accommodation, and was referred to Launchpad for support. Within 6 days, we assessed Craig by phone, moved him into our supported housing, and allocated him a support worker who has since developed a support plan for him; he is now registered with a GP, connected with supports to address his alcohol use, working with a psychologist to address his PTSD. Since working with us, Craig has told us how overwhelmed he’s been with the help that is available and that he’s not felt this stable for a long time, and said it shows what having secure accommodation can do for everything else in your life.

On behalf of clients like Craig, our staff and volunteers, thank you again for your generosity and support. You truly are part of Team Launchpad, and we couldn’t be happier to have you on board.

We hope that you and your staff are keeping safe and well during this difficult time. Please feel free to reach out to us if you have questions or concerns. Many of our staff will be working from home during the outbreak, but are happy to connect with you at any time that is convenient. If you would like to hear regular updates from Launchpad then please sign up to our newsletter here.

Thank you again, and best wishes.

Kirsti, Kate and Jennifer
The Launchpad Fundraising Team