East To West

Nightstop

Nightstop provides short-term emergency accommodation for young people in the homes of trained volunteers while a more permanent solution can be found by statutory agencies. Nightstop provides the young person with a safe home in which to stay the night as well as an evening meal, breakfast, their own bedroom for the night and washing facilities. The uniqueness of Nightstop is that the host welcomes the young person into their own home as a guest.

"Nightstop will give the chance for young people in crisis to have a safe and welcoming place for a night while other help is sorted out - we are glad to see the arrival of such a service locally."
Lewis Brown, the Housing Options Team Leader for Spelthorne Borough Council "

Homelessness in Spelthorne and Runnymede may not be as visible
as in some parts of the UK, but this project was initiated through discussion with local agencies who were struggling to find suitable placements for homeless young people coming to them for help. The first Nightstop Scheme began in Leeds in 1987 in response to youth homelessness in the city. It has since flourished and there are now around 50 Nightstop schemes across the country providing safe and free accommodation to homeless young people within the homes of trained volunteers.

Nightstop is accessed by referral from statutory agencies such as Connexions and local authorities. With this approach Nightstop is able to keep the emphasis on finding permanent solutions for the young people. Much of the funding for Nightstop comes from Thames Homeless Project, who have also brought there experience of working with homeless young people to Nightstop. Thames Homeless project aims to prevent homelessness and alleviate the effect of homelessness; helping single people from Elmbridge, Runnymede and Spelthorne who do not qualify for help from the authorities.

"I am excited to be a part of this project which I believe will make a real difference in the lives of young people who find themselves in a vulnerable position within Spelthorne."
James Butler, Co-ordinator of Runnymede and Spelthorne Nightstop Spelthorne."

How it works

I'm a young person wanting to use Nightstop
Nightstop cannot be accessed directly by a young person. If you're a young person in need of the kind of assistance that Nightstop provides or if you know of a young person you feel might be helped by the project, in the first instance you'll need to contact either Connexions Staines (01784 455081), or Spelthorne (01784 446380) or Runnymede (01932 425832) housing.

I work for an agency dealing with young people and I may want to refer one to Nightstop
Before you refer a young person to Nightstop we ask that we run through a brief training to go through details of the scheme, how it works, and how a referral is made. Please contact James to arrange training and/or to get more details about referring to Nightstop.

I'm interested in becoming a host
Being a host can be very rewarding. It’s a simple way to make a real difference to a young person.

To be a Nightstop host you will need

A spare room for a young person to spend a night
To give them an evening meal and breakfast
To be able to make a young person feel welcome in your house

We will ask of you
We will ask you for an application, a CRB check and at least two references.

We will provide for you
We will provide you with training, the flexibility to be a host around what you do and 24 hour support when you have a young person in your house.

I would like to know more
Please contact James if you would like more details about becoming a host or to ask for an application form.

I would like to know how I might support Nightstop
If, for whatever reason, you are unable to be a host there are other ways to support Nightstop. Please contact James to find out about other current needs. If you are able and willing to provide the project with financial help please click here.

“I’m pleased that we can offer, through Nightstop, a breathing space for the young person and the referring agencies to find right solution.” Andy Burns, Director of east to west

“We are delighted to be working in partnership with east to west to deliver a much needed service for young people in Runnymede and Spelthorne. It’s such a simple concept yet Nightstop can prevent young people becoming homeless and help then turn their lives around.” Angela Horsey, Chair of THP

Nightstop