Charlotte Craig

Volunteers’ Week is an annual celebration of the contribution millions of people make across the UK through volunteering in their communities. It is run by the National Council for Voluntary Organisations and takes place on the 1st to 7th of June every year. BHT Sussex volunteers worked 2,630 hours of their time in the year 2022/2023, demonstrating how essential volunteers are to the delivery of many of our projects. Celebrations of this achievement included a reception in Burgess Hill, hosted by Mayor Janice Henwood. Our Chief Executive, David Chaffey, and Daniel O’Connell, Head of HR and Learning & Development, were … Read more

Keeler and Birmingham Optical have donated an £18,000 top of the range slit lamp to the Brighton Vision Care for Homeless People clinic stationed in BHT Sussex’s First Base Day Centre. The new equipment will greatly improve care for patients and enhance the optometrists’ clinical abilities. Replacing a 30-year-old slit lamp, the new model enables the optometrist to engage the patient with the findings and in any possible treatment pathway, as Nicola Bennett, Keeler Clinical Product Training Manager explained: This slit lamp will help to provide better monitoring, help with referrals, and enable the clinician to talk through the findings … Read more

Vickie Norris from Portslade is taking part in multiple Ultra Challenges this year to raise money for BHT Sussex’s Addiction Services. She has already walked 25km at Easter and will walk 44km this Saturday 28 May in the London to Brighton Ultra Challenge. Her final challenge is a 50km walk in August. Vickie has a close familial connection to the Recovery Project, where clients are supported to achieve healthy independent living, free from alcohol and drugs. Vickie herself is recovering from alcohol addiction and has been sober for 9 months now. Training for the walks has aided her recovery and … Read more

BHT Sussex and QED Sustainable Urban Developments have submitted an application to Brighton and Hove City Council to extend the lease of our Richardson’s Yard properties. The lease was originally due to end in May 2023. The 36 self-contained flats at Richardson’s Yard were converted from shipping containers and offer housing for people who might otherwise have been sleeping rough. Its residents are then eventually helped to move on into more secure housing. Richardson’s Yard was originally conceived to help address the housing crisis in Brighton in 2013 with an original lease of 5 years, which extended for a further … Read more

BHT Sussex, and Q Square Aparthotel Brighton, have announced a new fundraising initiative to support people who are marginalised and homeless in Brighton and Hove. The initiative is centred around the simple theme of providing beds. While the hotel provides beds to its customers, BHT Sussex provides beds to many of its clients, or helps people to move on from rough sleeping to safe accommodation. Q Square Aparthotel has installed a contactless donation device on its reception desk, encouraging its patrons to donate to BHT Sussex. The ‘tap to donate’ device makes giving easy, with no forms to fill in … Read more

Brighton-based clothing alterations business, The Zip Yard, has launched a winter clothes drive in partnership with BHT Sussex. BHT Sussex runs First Base Day Centre for people sleeping rough in Brighton and Hove. The centre provides vital services, support and advice to people who are rough sleeping or vulnerably housed. First Base relies on donations for its clients, particularly in the winter months when the cold weather increases demand for warm clothes. The Zip Yard is encouraging its customers and other Brighton locals to drop off their unwanted warm winter clothing to the Zip Yard at 29 Queens Road. As … Read more

The Whitehawk Inn, a popular Brighton community centre which provides a range of courses, services and support, will close at the end of March 2023. Services at the centre are currently delivered by BHT Sussex, but it is no longer financially viable for us to keep it open. The Whitehawk Inn provides local residents with information and advice services, well-being, adult learning and social groups, and access to IT facilities. It is used by a range of community organisations, and also as a polling centre and a vaccination centre. BHT Sussex is liaising closely with clients who used the centre … Read more

The Choir with No Name are thrilled to be performing in two exciting musical celebrations in Brighton this March. The choir – which is made up of people who have experienced homelessness and marginalisation – will be featured at the Global Music Community Celebration at Jubilee Library on Sunday 5th March. The event starts at 11am and ends at 4pm. This is a free event celebrating music from around the world. The music featured will be from Ukraine, Bangladesh, Tajikistan and the UK. There will also be a stall run by the local Ukrainian community group with tasty snacks. The … Read more

At the end of 2022, BHT Sussex ran its annual Christmas fundraising appeal, in aid of First Base Day Centre. We are grateful as ever to so many people in our fantastic local community, who held a number of fundraisers and kindly donated the money raised to our appeal. Held at Exeter Street Hall, ‘Merry Musicale’ was a wonderfully festive fundraiser held by voice teacher, Lauren Easton. Her voice students took to the stage to spread some festive cheer to a sold-out audience and performed an array of Christmas tunes. Some of the students were even singing in public for … Read more