Hagan Homes donated £30,000 to The Welcome Organisation for the purchase of a new Street Outreach Vehicle. The vehicle has a real and positive impact on the charity's work and in turn, on the lives of some of the most vulnerable homeless people in Belfast. The support of Hagan Homes also ensures that the service is able to run as efficiently and effectively as possible for the foreseeable future. The Outreach Vehicle provides potentially life-saving support on the streets of Belfast 20 hours a day, 7am to 3am, 365 days a year.
The Outreach service works in tandem with the charity's other services including its Drop-In Centre, Crisis Accommodation for Women, Floating Support service and Welcome Home furniture project — helping people "from street to home".
A further £27,000 was donated to employ a Trauma Informed Support Counsellor for the organisation's women's services at 32 hours per week costing a total of £22,99.65, plus a counsellor for four hours per week at £3,710.20.
The Counsellor provides support to women using Catherine House - Welcome's new supported accommodation for women. Catherine House provides 24 hour supported living for ten women experiencing homelessness who are ready to take the next steps to live independently. Catherine House is more than just a roof over their heads - it has a therapeutic ethos were trauma informed support is interwoven into daily lives.
The Welcome Organisation sought permission from the family of Catherine Kenny, a vulnerable woman who died in Belfast in 2016, to name the facility in her memory.
