London’s Deputy Mayor James Murray and the Duchess of Norfolk officially opened a new homelessness centre in central London on Wednesday 24th May.
The Endeavour Centre at Sherborne House, near London Bridge, is an innovative space that combines help in a crisis with support for those young people who are rebuilding their lives. The national headquarters for Depaul UK, the building also provides a hub for Depaul’s award-winning Nightstop service – Britain’s only national network for emergency accommodation for young people.
James Murray, London’s Deputy Mayor for Housing and Residential Development, and the Duchess of Norfolk, Patron of Depaul International, jointly cut the ribbon to open the centre in Decima Street, Southwark.
Mr Murray said: “It shames our city that homelessness and rough sleeping in London have risen so much in recent years. We need to work together to support people who are at risk of ending up on the streets, and so I very much welcome Depaul’s efforts to help young people in crisis find somewhere safe to sleep, and their new Endeavour Centre, which will provide a safe haven for young people to access the support and advice they need.”
Depaul UK Chair of Trustees Suzanne McCarthy said: “It is a great honour to have both the Duchess of Norfolk and London’s Deputy Mayor opening our Endeavour Centre at Sherborne House this afternoon. It is a place that will bring hope to many young people in this city and further afield.”
Depaul UK CEO Martin Houghton-Brown said: “No young person should ever have to sleep in an unsafe place. The creation of the Endeavour Centre in London means that not only has Nightstop, with its brilliant offer of a safe bed for young people in crisis, got a base, but that young people who would otherwise be at risk on the streets can have somewhere safe to be during the day.
“Young people who need Depaul’s help in a homelessness crisis and who live in our accommodation will be able to use the centre to connect with the community, learning how to be active, creative, emotionally stable and how to get into education or employment.”
He added: “I am excited by the partnerships we are already forging to make the Endeavour Centre a real hub for community solutions to young people’s homelessness. For many visitors who come to see the Endeavour Centre for themselves, they are understanding for the first time the underlying causes of homelessness and the real potential to not only address the needs, but also prevent homelessness in the first place. The Centre has such vibrancy and hope written large all over it.”
