Somerset repair cafe's tech amnesty to support community
Ms Hammond said it was after hearing a woman at a charity shop saying she could not afford to fix her iron, that she came up with the idea of opening a repair café."I thought it's such a simple thing to do to help people out and it's pointless buying a new whatever every five minutes, because items work for such a short while nowadays."
Repair Cafe volunteers also visit homes with a thermal imaging camera, to help people increase insulation with "simple fixes in their homes like thicker curtains," Ms Hammond added.She said after lockdown the repair cafe has built the community in quite a strong way, offering a service and a social space.Hugh Champion, one of the repair team, said: "We have a good time, hopefully delight a few customers, and send them home with things they had written off that are back to working condition again."And people are so delighted when you help them fix something especially when it has high sentimental value," he added.
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BBC News
5 hours ago
- BBC News
Number of empty homes on the rise across England
Across England, the number of empty homes has been steadily rising, with councils "increasingly concerned" about both the impact they have on local communities and the lost resource. "It makes you feel afraid because you don't know what's going to happen next."Ann Devereaux has cherished her home in a peaceful corner of Bristol for more than 25 years. But the property next door - empty, collapsing and overrun with pests - has become a constant source of was once just an eyesore is now a "magnet" for crime, she said."It's a place just available and open for misuse," she added."Whether it's men coming out and urinating against the wall, drug-dealing or fly-tipping."It makes me feel scared when I leave my house or come in at night. It's wearing me down emotionally."She has witnessed violence outside her front door, and the rotting smell of rubbish dumped inside the building sometimes drifts into her living room. Bristol City Council said it has ordered the owner of the building to make it Ms Devereaux and others in the tight-knit community of St Werburgh's say the situation is "only getting worse".Just months ago, the roof of the derelict property collapsed, unleashing dozens of rats into nearby gardens."It's a wasted resource, and I know there are a lot of places like this which are empty and rotting and creating real problems," said Ms city council said it is "continuing to monitor the building" and will consider further action, including stepping in to carry out safety works, if the owner does not meet their obligations. The BBC contacted the owner of the building, but had no of St Werburgh's say they want the property brought back into use urgently - and their story is not number of empty homes in England has risen over the last decade, even as the country grapples with a housing are now more than 700,000 empty homes, according to the most recent government figures. Of those, 264,884 are classed as "long-term empty", meaning no one has lived there for six months or Wales, the figure stood at 120,000 empty properties the last time the data was collated. In 2023 the Welsh Government launched a £50m National Empty Homes scheme, which offered up to £25,000 for improvements to be made to properties to make them available again. Empty homes are also viewed as a missed opportunity by housing one single night last autumn there were 4,667 people sleeping on the streets in England, according to official statistics - a near-record high and the third annual rise in a row. Bristol charity, 1625 Independent People, is trying to change Future Builders programme is transforming vacant properties into homes for young people facing homelessness to rent at a reduced cost. Becky Hopkins became homeless in the city at just 18 years old."I was completely lost, lonely, and isolated. I had feelings of self-hatred. I was worried all the time," she the programme gave Ms Hopkins a more affordable place to rent while she worked towards a more stable future. "After having a stable place, I really could focus on working on my mental health and building better habits."Now 21, she is training to become a Royal Navy engineer."It's a transformation I didn't think was possible," she said. Local councils are on the frontline of the empty homes issue, and leaders are now calling for stronger powers and resources to bring more back into officers are tasked with tracing the owners of empty properties so they can be held Fudge leads the team at South Gloucestershire Council, which has brought 47 properties back into use so far this year."If left empty, they can lead to a spiral of decline, neglect and decay in a community," he said."We initially try to engage with the owner, but when it becomes a detrimental impact to the wider neighbourhood, then we have to take enforcement action to stop that decline." Law change call If the property has been empty for more than two years, and the owner is not cooperating, councils can apply for an Empty Dwelling Management Order (EDMO).If granted, the council does not gain ownership of the property, but gets the right to manage and potentially improve it, recouping costs through this power is rarely utilised because of the long and complex process England, between 2017 and 2020, only 20 decisions were made on EDMO applications, according to government Local Government Association is calling for changes in the law to make it easier for councils to take over the management of vacant homes. The group Action on Empty Homes is also campaigning to bring empty properties back into manager Chris Bailey said: "Every empty home is a lost opportunity to improve the life of a family that's currently homeless."These are homes which are relevant, in the right places - in the middle of towns and cities where people want to live - where services exist already."It's not a case of building a whole new town and waiting for 10 years for it to happen, these are homes that are available now, they could be brought back into use within a year."But it is not always straightforward. When homeowners die, their property often remains empty during the probate process, during which their assets are legally assessed and Sadler inherited her mother's house in 2011."It's a huge privilege to inherit a home," she said. "But it's bittersweet when it's such a close family member, because the home is them and they are the home."The property had fallen into disrepair, and Ms Sadler struggled to afford the mounting costs of essential renovations. As a result, the house has been empty while work is ongoing."We found more and more things that needed work," she said."You find yourself thinking - how am I going to do this?"Ms Sadler has secured a loan from Lendology which works with councils to offer low-interest loans to bring empty homes back into now hopes to complete the renovations and rent out the property through the Homes for Ukraine scheme. A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said: "We are determined to fix the housing crisis we have inherited, and we know that having too many empty homes in an area can have a significant impact on local communities."That's why we are giving councils stronger powers to increase council tax on long-term empty homes alongside removing tax incentives for short-term lets, and we continue to consider further action." If you want to contact us regarding this story, email westinvestigations@ BBC West on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.
The Guardian
11 hours ago
- The Guardian
Resistance to change in the lifesaving work of the Samaritans
Unlike Peter Ormerod (I was a Samaritan – I love Samaritans. But for the sake of all who take those calls, it must change course, 29 July), I am a still Samaritan, and spent several hours last Tuesday on the phone to some extremely distressed callers. I did that from what was formerly the front bedroom of a ramshackle Edwardian terrace house, which has room for just two workstations. The words 'call centre' have been widely used to depict the charity's proposed shift to larger, more modern branches. I wonder how many readers who work in comfortable, modern offices housing 20 (or even more) desks would consider themselves marooned in an inhuman 'call centre' (or 'regional hub' as Ormerod labels them)? Because Ormerod is no longer a Samaritan, he perhaps has not had access to the FAQs for volunteers, which note that nobody will be asked to work on their own. As many readers will experience daily, digital technology allows teams to work together when they are not in the same physical space. Change is really hard. I worked for the Guardian in the 2000s, when it moved from a poorly converted old factory building in Farringdon to brand-new premises in King's Cross ('the middle of nowhere', as it was labelled by some staff); from holding back news stories for the next day's paper, to publishing them first on the website; from keeping the tech team separate from the editorial team, to having them work alongside each other; and from air-freighting copies of the paper to countries where fewer than 100 copies per day were sold, to not doing that. All these changes were stoutly resisted, particularly by some (not all) longer-serving staff. I wonder how many of these changes would strike today's Guardian staff as destructive of the spirit of the enterprise?Tim BrooksGreat Bourton, Oxfordshire Having read the article by Peter Ormerod, I have to confess that I felt panic. Many many years ago when I was a single mum with a baby, few friends and no family, I called the Samaritans in the middle of the night. I was not suicidal, but I did feel as if I could no longer cope, that I was breaking apart. Bless the woman that answered my call; she chatted to me for quite some time, was at no point judgmental and gave me strength to go on. Many years later, I was unemployed, so I volunteered at my local Samaritans, went through their training and shadowed existing staff. There is no way that volunteers should be asked to work from home. There may be some nights when the only calls you get are from troubled individuals seeking self-gratification, but it is possible that the next call you take will be from someone about to cut short their life, or maybe no one speaks but you can hear in the background awful sounds of abuse. Once that call has finished, you need to be with someone who can empathise with you and help you put it from your mind so you do not take it home with you. This cannot be done when working from home. Samaritans should not put volunteers' own mental health at risk – it is hard enough as it NotleyNorwich I volunteered with the Samaritans for 12 years across two branches. I left on the day that I found myself getting too emotional about two consecutive calls. Up until then I had never left a branch with a call hanging over me. Any difficult call and you get to debrief with the other Samaritans on your shift. This was essential, talking to a real person, face to face over a cup of tea, in a private room. I met and chatted with Chad Varah, the Samaritans founder, in a dinner queue at a conference. He was impressed that I was a younger volunteer; I was impressed with the way he was still a slight irritant to the then 'management'. His attitude that you should never put the phone down on callers – even sex callers – was correct. My fellow volunteer, Karen, said she had never put the phone down on anyone: she just treated them like any other caller in crisis and either they would put the phone down on her in frustration; or, as frequently happened, they turned into genuine callers – men (it was nearly always men) who were lonely, unloved, sad. I gave talks to a variety of organisations and schools about what we did. I was keen to encourage more transparency about the Samaritans (the thinking then was that you should not tell people you were a Samaritan in case a caller called up and got you, someone they recognised). This decision to close branches in favour of remote working is shortsighted. I think I should still be worried about the management even now. I'm sure Chad would be thinking the KerriganHaslemere, Surrey I have volunteered for Citizens Advice for many years in several small offices at several different times in my life. I am retired now, have skills and experience to offer, would dearly like to use them again for Citizens Advice but the only options are to work in a large noisy impersonal phone hub or to take calls from home. Neither are possible for me – the former is too distant and too noisy and stressful, the latter is emotionally terrifying. So Citizens Advice has lost me. Samaritans will lose many like me if it follows its current HillSheffield
BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
Wiveliscombe Pool project will allow it to open over winter
A historic lido should be able to stay open over the winter months when the construction of a new heated pool house is Pool in Wiveliscombe, Somerset, was given planning permission for a £250,000 development - which will include a cafe, toilet and space for lifeguards - on 25 proposals were approved despite some objections over the impact the development could have on the look of the neighbouring war memorial recreation ground.A Somerset Council planning officer said the benefits to the community outweighed the harm the development could cause in the conservation area. The pool's trustees hope the project will be finished by spring 2026. Mike Davis, a trustee at the community pool, said there was "a big call for cold water swimming" and the new development would extend the pool's swimming £233,000 of a £250,000 target for the project has been raised so far, Mr Davis said. He added: "It's a great achievement, it's a community pool so we have a lot of activities. "It's great to see kids come in, we teach them to swim and later on they become lifeguards."Work on the project is due to start over the winter.
