MULHOLLAND VISITS SHELTER HELPING HOMELESS AT CHRISTMAS

12.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Mon 21st Nov 2005

Greg Mulholland, MP for Leeds North West, this week visited Crisis HQ in London and the Booth House Salvation Army hostel. Greg was one of the candidates the Crisis homelessness panel met with in Leeds on their 'Big Voice Tour' during the general election campaign this year. Crisis is a charity which seeks to fight homelessness but also encourage homeless people to fulfil their potential.

During his visit, Greg was introduced to the diverse and various ways homelessness is being tackled by Crisis. This included visiting the Crisis Skylight, which is based at Crisis and works with homeless and vulnerably housed people to build self-confidence, develop skills and gain work experience and offers a number of schemes from IT to Tai-Chi. Greg also saw the recently opened Learning Centre for himself, which contains a state of the art computer suite where Skylight members can gain skills which are increasingly essential to gaining employment and participation in society.

Greg visited the Skylight Cafe, which is also based at Crisis. The Skylight Cafe offers trainees real experience of working in a busy cafe environment. Trainees stay until they are ready to move on. Most have found employment, mainly in the catering industry.

Part of Greg's visit involved going to Booth House, a Salvation Army hostel providing accommodation for homeless people. The role of Booth House is quite different to that of Crisis, serving mainly to provide secure accommodation for people who would otherwise be homeless.

David Coulthread, a spokesman for Crisis Parliamentary and Public Affairs Executive, welcomed Greg Mulholland's visit to Crisis Skylight.

Commenting, he said:

"It is important that politicians recognise that getting people off the streets is only part of the solution to homelessness. The homeless are one of the most vulnerable and socially excluded sections of society. Most want to work and to find accommodation where they can feel safe and secure, but all too often homelessness is a barrier to employment which is in turn a barrier to getting a home."

Commenting on the visit, Greg said:

"I have organised a meeting in Westminster in December inviting members of the Crisis Homelessness Panel and also other MPs, to encourage politicians to engage with this important issue which continues to affect too many constituents.

"The visit showed the importance of work carried about by organisations such as Crisis. We must do more to help the homeless re-integrate into society and also to find employment. It was very interesting to see the facilities that Crisis and the Salvation Army have put in place to help those who are currently homeless. The only way for politicians to truly engage with the issues and difficulties facing our homeless people is to meet with them directly. I look forward to continue to work on this issue with Crisis."