A few years ago I was invited to speak at a conference in a church in the North East of England with the title: Homelessness: are we really helping? The organisers had read a paper I had written for a Housing Justice forum titled The practice of grace and truth with homeless people and wanted… Continue reading Homelessness: are we really helping?
Category: Homelessness
Charity Detox: the difference between crisis situations and chronic problems
Two months ago, I read US activist Robert Lupton’s book Toxic Charity: how churches and charities harm those they help. I have just finished his follow up book Charity Detox: What charity would look like if we cared about results. Lupton acknowledges the controversy stirred by his previous book but his views are forged by… Continue reading Charity Detox: the difference between crisis situations and chronic problems
Lazarus: friendship, trust and joy coming back to life
This week I was invited to speak at an event hosted by Lazarus, a new initiative to support people affected by homelessness which is launching in London. Lazarus runs communities made up of formerly homeless people living alongside young professionals. Over 250 people live in their communities across Northern Europe and Mexico. It is yet… Continue reading Lazarus: friendship, trust and joy coming back to life
The book which has most influenced how we respond to homeless people
This article is based on my lecture at a British Academy conference at Lincoln University on ‘Representing Homelessness’ where I spoke on ‘theological representation’. It is a matter of historical fact that a huge number of the charities established to address homelessness were set up by committed Christians. Some retain a strong link to their… Continue reading The book which has most influenced how we respond to homeless people
‘Everyone else was nice…but she told me the truth I needed to hear’
Ten years ago I was leading a seminar at the Greenbelt festival on homelessness with Housing Justice. We had arranged for an actor to interrupt the start of the session, pretending to be homeless and appeal to the 300-odd people in the venue for cash. We wanted to recreate something of the dilemma and tension… Continue reading ‘Everyone else was nice…but she told me the truth I needed to hear’
‘Sing It Out’: how choirs help address homelessness – by Sam Chaplin
The Choir With No Name is a charity that runs choirs with people affected by homelessness. I have been the musical director of for its London choir for 9 years and we also have choirs in Brighton, Birmingham, Liverpool and one just started in Cardiff. Community choir singing is a movement that has spread across… Continue reading ‘Sing It Out’: how choirs help address homelessness – by Sam Chaplin
Love is stronger than death – by Sam Wells
A sermon by Revd Dr Sam Wells at the Service of Commemoration for people who have been homeless who have died in the last year, 4th November 2021 Death is the biggest taboo in our culture, because death is the stripping away of everything that matters. The loss of breath, of our body, of relationship,… Continue reading Love is stronger than death – by Sam Wells
Homelessness Ends in Community – by Simon Dwight
Three of us stood uncomfortably close in a small, grey, social housing lift heading for the fourth floor. Two of us were holding open boxes of dried food and some pots and pans. The other, James, stood in the high visibility jacket I’d never seen him without, gently humming to himself. This was a big… Continue reading Homelessness Ends in Community – by Simon Dwight
PARKLIFE – by Sally Mann
There was a time when hanging out in the park was the prerogative of those the band Blur described as “the park class”. Blur’s 1994 hit Parklife conjures up the secret life of city parks as a place to suspend social norms: public sunbathing, loud music, playing with dogs. Another culture During the Covid pandemic… Continue reading PARKLIFE – by Sally Mann
Pride, prejudice & organisational humility
When it comes to addressing homelessness and the issues surrounding it, partnerships and joint work between organisations is absolutely vital. This is because no one comes off the streets into accommodation through the work of just one agency. Successful progress is almost always a team effort involving a host of different agencies. It is their… Continue reading Pride, prejudice & organisational humility
Grace + Truth 