Homeless youngsters and single parents will benefit from almost £320,000 of National Lottery cash given to Keighley this week.
Housing advice agency Keyhouse was granted £221,000 to buy its existing Low Street premises and rent the shop building next door. Wesley Housing Project, which provides acc-ommodation for lone parent families, was giv-en £96,000 for child-care and outreach work.
Keyhouse office manager Kevin Walker says the charity will now have enough room for its advice workers to offer complete confidentiality to clients. Clients currently have to talk over their problems in tiny booths within earshot of the cramped reception area. Mr Walker says: "We have tremendous pressure on space. We have one separate room, but it's not enough."
Keyhouse offers several services including benefits and housing advice, an accommodation list, landlords' register and bond service for new tenants. Keyhouse's housing manager, who oversees the charity's hostel and houses-for-rent, is also based in Low Street. The charity will soon take on another worker after winning a contract to provide Legal Aid housing and benefits advice to Keighley people.
The Wesley Project's £96,000 grant will cover the cost of employing extra workers for three years, play equipment and running costs. Manager Heather Partington says one worker will provide child-care when the project runs work skills and parenting courses for its clients. The other new worker will support single parents who formerly lived in the project's flats but have now moved on to permanent accommodation.
The project, which has been running seven years, rents six self-contained flats to homeless lone parent families. Heather says: "We're delighted with this grant. In the past we haven't been able to give the support we wanted. We want to help people resettle in the community."
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