The Cold Weather Group (CWG) was set up in 1991 as an alliance of groups and individuals with the aim of increasing co-ordination and provision for homeless people sleeping rough in Bristol during the winter months. Registered as a charity in 1999, the CWG’s current management committee consists of five trustees. We have one part-time member of staff but do not have an office base of our own. We are dependent for our income on donations, service fees and grants from charitable trusts.

For the first six years the CWG set up and ran a direct access emergency Night Shelter each winter, managed with the support of Shelter, Bristol City Council and other agencies. In 1997 the CWG formed a partnership with English Churches Housing Group (ECHG) who took on the direct management of the project, with the CWG concentrating on providing volunteer support. Since 2000 a Night Centre has been run instead of a shelter, in line with Government funding priorities. From the winter of 2007/8 the Night Centre is to be extended all year round. It is being incorporated into a new Homelessness Assessment Centre that is currently being constructed within ECHG’s Jamaica Street Hostel.

Aims of the CWG

The CWG's key aim is to assist in the provision of a winter Night Centre which fulfils all of the following:

• Shelter, warmth, food and safety
• An environment free from bullying, violence and intimidation
• Help in accessing other services
• Priority and a safe space for women
• Improvement in personal health
• Support in developing self-esteem and addressing issues
• Additional support and befriending from volunteers
• Opportunities for feedback from service users
• Preparation for and access to resettlement opportunities

Associated aims are fundraising and working with other agencies to identify and raise awareness of homelessness and people's needs.

Role of the Cold Weather Group

The CWG works in partnership with English Churches Housing Group (ECHG), a housing association with experience of providing accomodation for homeless people. ECHG is repsonsible for the Night Centre's paid staff and day-to-day management (funded with Government grant from Bristol City Council). The CWG concentrates on the following areas:

• Recruitment, training and support of volunteers to provide additional support services to Night Centre users
• Fundraising for additional equipment and services
• Funding `welfare' needs (such as Christmas presents or clothing items) for Night Centre users
• Identifying issues such as access to healthcare for homeless people, or gaps in services for those with drug dependency
• Working with ECHG to identify ways of improving the services provided
• Carrying out Night Centre user and volunteer surveys to monitor the success and effectiveness of the Night Centre