Leading housebuilder Barratt Homes West Midlands has donated £1,000 from its Community Fund to Hope4Rugby to help with running costs and new equipment.

Hope4Rugby is an organisation dedicated to aiding anyone who has fallen on hard times and is in need of some vital support. The Hope Centre, located on Newbold Road, offers its clients clothing, showers and a clinic, as well as several different supports systems depending on the individual’s own needs.

The charity also runs a foodbank that has provided emergency food to the local people of Rugby since 2012. In 2020, the foodbank helped over 5,000 people, over a third of which were children.

Adi Robinson, Service Delivery Manager at Hope4Rugby, said: “Hope4 Rugby is a small charity working to support the homeless and those in food poverty. This generous donation will go towards our running costs and services, including support from a dedicated key worker, access to showers, laundry, clothing, access to computers and emergency food.

“Over the last 12 months we’ve worked with 106 individuals, 56 of which were new referrals to us. The support of our team and services is so needed by the client base, as facing homelessness is daunting and brings huge challenges to their general health and mental wellbeing.”

Whilst they had been on a steady rise over the last decade prior to the pandemic, the disruptions caused by the lockdowns saw general use of foodbanks soar. According to Commons Library, 2020 saw 2.5 million food parcels handed out, nearly double the number of 2017.

Adi continued: “Thankfully we only had to close our doors for a short time during the initial lockdown. We have risen to the challenge of our Centre being Covid secure, and our clients have adapted to the changes really well. The impact of the pandemic for many has been immense but added to being homeless takes it to another level.

“Support for local charities is so important as they are on the front line of response to their given community and client base, such as ourselves, working directly with the homeless or those in food poverty.

“Our operating costs are around £200k per year and are always looking for community support in terms of funding. We are actively recruiting for 4,000 people to give £4 per month – if people can join our Hope4000 family and donate the price of a coffee, it would be fantastic!”

Adrian Evans, Managing Director of Barratt Homes West Midlands, said: “As a leading developer it is really important that we support the community in the areas in which we build.

“Hope4Rugby is a pivotal part of the Rugby and wider Warwickshire communities. The relief it provides in regards to emergency food parcels and tackling homelessness has never been more important. We are very proud to support the charity’s immense work and encourage others to offer their support in any way they can.”