Homeless veterans enjoyed a friendly football match.

Residents of The Beacon, a scheme for homeless veterans, played a friendly match against Hardwick House at a professional sports facility.

Life in a hostel can at times feel isolated. 20 men from local hostels took part, along with four staff members. Among the small crowd of spectators was a professional ex-football player.

The men had a training session before the match and then played for a couple of hours. Due to different numbers of players on each team, they swapped sides, giving them a further chance to get to know one another.

The Beacon won the match and got a trophy presented to them. All of the men decided to do some fundraising together instead of playing against each other in order to get more involved with their local communities.

Church Homeless Trust paid for their minibus and snacks on the day. The veterans got to develop skills such as team work, communication, and socialising with others. Some of the attendees said:

“This was a fabulous day and we enjoyed the opportunity to work as a team. The journey there was also fun as we shared a minibus with members of staff, and enjoyed sharing this experience with them to prove that we can come together as a team.”

“It was great getting out of the Beacon, as we are quite isolated here and the opportunity to venture out was not to be missed.”

“It was a great opportunity to meet veterans living on another scheme and share their thoughts and opinions about our accommodation and facilities.”