Sanctus was founded by two people who remain, Trustees of the charity, they were distressed about the seemingly growing numbers of homeless people on the streets and those in need of food.

Over 10 years ago, in 2011, we started by offering free food to 8-12 people each day from the café in Broomfield Road, which was at the time a commercial café. Within 18 months, following the closure of a local day centre, the decision was made to provide an all-day service for the homeless and close the commercial café service and open as a charity. In 2012, Sanctus was formed and the first winter after opening it snowed between October and March.

For a number of years, Sanctus’ survival was down to private donor funding. No one was an expert, and there was a quick realisation that homelessness is a highly complex issue, not solved by simply providing food and warmth. It was soon found through conversations with service users that wider support was needed such as advocacy, signposting, benefits support, and even extra activities.

One of the greatest realisations was the strength of the companionship and support created between each service user by coming to the same location each day, the existence of Sanctus was creating support networks for people leading very isolated lives.

Over the years, demand grew and somehow many winters were managed in that small café space with thousands of home-cooked meals being produced. Our volunteers, services and the community around us grew, and we started to get a reputation of trust amongst the broader homeless community. The nickname ‘Mum’ for the Café Manager showed the level of affection for the Café.

Many of our original service users were being helped to move on and make better lives and opportunities for themselves. There are so many stories of success from that period and we often have people who come back to visit us from those days who have turned their life around.

One team member, who remains with us today, had a dream of creating a Hub which would offer support from a dedicated space, rather than within the Café. In 2019, 7 years after Sanctus was created, the Sanctus Hub was formed.

The Hub now boasts a team of four offerings dedicated to support and signposting service. The work that team one had done for the previous 7 years, had created an incredible amount of trust, relationships and knowledge. The Café had worked so effectively and the Hub was similarly impactful for service user lives.

In 2020 the world changed, the pandemic struck, and the vulnerable of our society were impacted and suffered more than any other. During this period two crucial things happened in Sanctus’ history and both again transformed the charity and started a new chapter.

The first was that Sanctus was deemed an essential service, despite being a charity, and was requested to remain open to feed and support the vulnerable. The staff of the charity were asked if they wanted to continue while the country was in lockdown and every single team member said yes.

Along with amazing volunteers, Sanctus remained open. While the streets were empty, Sanctus continued to feed the vulnerable and even created, on a free basis like all Sanctus services, a food delivery service for those who had been temporarily housed. Sanctus was the only available route for food for so many during that period.

Additionally, a huge decision was considered carefully and then made, it was obvious the pandemic would have a major impact on the health, housing status and financial security of so many. The decision was made to move to new, much larger premises, close by again on Broomfield Road, three times the size of the original café with room to seat 60+, along with dedicated rooms for the Hub and also room for other organisations and charities to utilise while providing key services to people in need of support.

Alongside the pandemic, the building was secured and the funds were raised for a major fit-out which took six months to complete. The doors were opened in July 2021, and the result has been transformational for Sanctus and the community accessing our services. The Café has grown, the Hub has grown, and many other organisations and charities are using the building to create a safety net of support essential to maintaining independence, dignity and good health for the ever-growing community of people coming through Sanctus doors.

The new building was desperately needed as service user numbers are growing month-on-month. More people are being fed and more people are being helped. The energy and cost-of-living crisis is driving more people into need, it appears that this pattern will continue for some time. That crucial decision made during the pandemic means Sanctus is ready to help.

However, another byproduct of this history is that, as a charity and a group of people, Sanctus has over 10 years experience of in operating and assisting the vulnerable, in addition to the highs and lows of raising funds to support such a self-sustaining organisation. We invite other charities and organisations to see the model we have at Sanctus and share experiences.

We employ an amazing group of people, including one of our ex-service users, who keep the charity running, and are the familiar faces which make Sanctus what it is. In 2021, we were also able to employ two people via the ECL Learning disabilities programme and these individuals are now proudly key members of the Sanctus team. We also have over 50 dedicated volunteers who help us across the charity and whose efforts are invaluable.

All of this has been achieved through so many amazing supporters who have been involved in the life of Sanctus and the achievements we have had over the years. It would be unfair to pick out individual supporters as everyone who has ever donated or supported Sanctus should be very proud of their part in this history. There are many difficult challenges ahead but we look forward to the next successful 10 years and we can only imagine, based on the last 10 years, what that will bring.

Thank you to everyone who will help make another 10+ years happen, we will continue to make you proud to support us.