Picture on right is of (l-r) hyh Head of Fundraising Kathryn Salmon,the Mayor of the Borough of Welwyn Hatfield,
Cllr Pat Mabbott and Cllr Frances Leonard, Mayor of St Albans City and District
We marked the launch of our #room4change Appeal with a Networking Breakfast which brought together corporate and community supporters from across Hertfordshire to learn more about hyh’s vital work.
#room4change is raising money for hyh’s Nightstop Herts scheme which provides emergency, short-term accommodation for a young person in the home of an approved volunteer.
A donation of just £25 will provide a young person with a safe, warm place to stay for the night, a listening ear and ‘breathing space' to work through their options with hyh workers
“We’d like to thank everyone who came to our inaugural Networking Breakfast this morning,” said hyh Head of Fundraising Kathryn Salmon.
“It was great to see so many supporters from local companies and community groups turn out to hear about our vital work and in particular the launch of our new Nightstop Herts scheme.
“It was very inspiring to listen to one of our iPro members, Jonathon, who has experienced homeless, and also one of our volunteer hosts Sharman,” added Kathryn.
“We hope their stories will encourage people to spread the word about hyh and the vital services we provide.”
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The aim of Nightstop Herts is to prevent young people from sleeping rough, "sofa surfing", or staying in unsuitable accommodation where they could be at risk.
There has been a huge increase in the need for this service, which is currently known as Crashpad.
Between October and December 2016, hyh provided 140 bed nights which was up 109% from 67 during the same period the previous year.
“At present, we have 20 volunteer hosts who provide 14 bed spaces across Hertfordshire and without them we couldn’t run our current Crashpad service,” manager TJ Nicholls said.
“Some of these hosts have been with us for many years. They always comment on how rewarding they have found volunteering and helping a young person in need.
“We hope to build on the incredible success of our Crashpad Scheme and recruit more hosts across the county to continue to help vulnerable young people.”
For more information go to www.hyh.org.uk or email