Church Housing Trust worked with BBC Lifeline to raise funds for an innovative rough sleepers’ project called Street Buddies, a scheme made up of volunteers who were once rough sleepers.

Trisha’s story

My life was chaotic, but now it’s changed.”

Trisha was homeless for ten years. As a teenager, she lived at home with her parents and sisters. But family life was fraught with arguments and she ended up leaving.

From the age of 17 she slept in doorways, begged so she could eat and buy drugs, and went in and out of hostels. As she got older, she realised it wasn’t the life she wanted. She wanted to get married, have kids and get a job.

Trisha became a Street Buddy after stopping her drug use and having volunteer training. With the help of Church Housing Trust, she has completed a 10-month paid traineeship in a hostel, and is now working with people with mental health issues.

She says: “Back then my life was chaotic, but now it’s changed… I have a life, a new home, a new partner, and I’m very happy.”

Richard’s story

I couldn’t have done it without people’s help.”

Richard had a comfortable lifestyle in a cosy apartment with his wife and three children, but everything changed when his marriage broke down. Suddenly he found himself on the streets with no job and no money.

He and his wife kept up a kind of normality when he took care of his children during the day, but at night he would sleep in a shelter, or on the streets.

The experience opened his eyes. With support from a homelessness scheme, he managed to turn things around. “I couldn’t have done it without lots of people’s help, time and encouragement,” he says.

After the help he received, Richard knew he wanted to give something back. He decided to volunteer as a Street Buddy, determined to turn his negative experience into something positive for others.

Richard is about to start a paid traineeship at a hostel for people with mental health problems. He is now in his own accommodation, and looking forward to having his kids visit him in his new home.