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Hill Street Updates

Planning permission and listed building consent has been granted by BCP Council.

In July we heard that we are to receive a grant for £5000 from the Salisbury Diocesan Social Welfare Fund and two cheques arrived for £1000 from individual supporters. We are grateful for this support.

Pro Bono Surveyor

In June MC Plan and Site Services offered to do the building control for our building pro bono! Helen Cook says: “We are delighted to support your project in regards to a building control application at no cost to the charity. As a company we are very passionate about supporting local charities such as yourselves and will assign a surveyor to follow the project through from beginning to end. For us in Poole this is also something very close to our hearts, an extremely valuable cause in what your charity is trying to do for homelessness in Poole.”

Furniture and Office Equipment Donated

Albion Language Tour Company has donated office furniture and equipment including a full-size Xerox copier with scanner, folder and staple functions, 12 tables, some 40 chairs, filing cabinets and shelving. Manager Janet Wright says: “As we cannot accept our German students in the current crisis, we have given up our premises in favour of operating from home. We are happy to donate everything to your wonderful charity.”

Pro Bono Architect

Words from our pro bono architect Ken Morgan RIBA: “Thanks for inviting me to get involved with R2R in converting the Hill Street Chapel as a base/hub for Poole’s homeless community. It is an extremely worthwhile cause and one in which I have some personal interest.”

Pews to be Removed

Our new home is Grade 2 listed but in May we received permission to remove the pews, which has sparked lots of local interest. A local organist has also been in touch to ask for any parts of the old organ which he may be able to put to good use elsewhere. A request we are happy to grant.

R2R Drop-Ins Re-Open

Posted by admin in Activities, News on June 22, 2020 | Drop-ins, homeless, Poole, rough sleepers, Routes to Roots, Skinner Street URC

From Wednesday 1 July R2R will re-open its drop-ins at Skinner Street URC to offer take-away food for rough sleepers only. With the Council’s emergency accommodation provision coming to an end and more rough sleepers being found on the streets, we believe re-starting this provision is vital. We plan to open between 1.30pm and 2.30pm every weekday. At this stage, we cannot allow clients inside the hall, in line with current rules governing cafes, so the toilets and shower will remain closed.

R2R on Aviva Crowdfunder Platform

Posted by admin in Fundraising, News on May 29, 2020 | Aviva Community Fund, crowdfunding, Hill Street Baptist Church, homelessness, Routes to Roots

Routes to Roots featured on the second round of the Aviva Community Fund’s 20202 crowdfunding programme for small charities. We raised £3,000 towards the refurbishment of our Hill Street building.

The Aviva Community Fund supports small charities with forward-thinking ideas across the UK with funding, vital support and resources.

As part of its funding support, Aviva is allocating every single one of its 16,000 UK employees an ‘Employee wallet’ of £60, to be split across each quarter of the programme. Aviva employees can donate their allocation of funds to the participating causes that matter most to them and this is added to funds raised externally on the Crowdfunder platform.

Jude Brooks, UK Head of Corporate Social Responsibility at Aviva, said: “We know that even the smallest charities can have a massive impact in building stronger communities. We are extremely proud to support Routes to Roots and look forward to enabling them to bring their idea to life.”