Celebrating 10 Years Of Alabaré Place

The decision to replace the previous Damascus House hostel with a purpose-built scheme, which gave residents a positive and forward-thinking home in which to receive the transformative support they need, would see us work closely with partners Greensquare, Homes and Communities Agency and many others to make the dream a reality.

Since Alabaré Place was officially opened in April 2012 by HRH The Countess of Wessex, our team has welcomed hundreds of homeless and vulnerable people. The property offers over 30 beds to those with high support needs.

Yesterday we celebrated with an event to mark the occasion when we heard from a couple of service users and members of the team. Lisa Thomas was presented with an Inspire Award for her development of creative activities, which are used to support vulnerable service users, the team presented Terry Blackman with a gift, as sadly Terry is relocating following five years of service while Nicki Vigor was also presented with a plant by a client for her long-standing work at Alabaré Place.

After the presentations, a blessing was given by Keith Foster our volunteer chaplain and a small apple tree was planted to commemorate the event in the garden at Alabaré Place. Finally, it was announced that the Drop-In Centre is once again up and running every day in the main foyer, following many months of Covid restrictions. The team are also now able to welcome those struggling and needing advice as part of a new initiative offering preventative support to a wider community. Overall the event was uplifting and a welcome celebration following what has been a challenging couple of years.

Simon, a former university teacher spent several months at Alabaré Place in 2015. He says;

“I was lucky. I mean, I found Alabaré or Alabaré found me…..My early days at Alabaré were all about recovery, but gradually as recovery became quite embedded, I developed a life from that. And, and it’s, you know, it’s a good life now… my son’s back with me and thriving…”.