B&Q Loughborough

The prevention or relief of poverty in shepshed and the surrounding area by providing regular food parcels to individuals and families in need.

The charity provides accommodation and support in Loughborough and Coalville for people who have been homeless. This includes supported housing, skills training, through Exaireo ReUse, addiction support and a programme of group activities including outdoor pursuits and craft groups.. Exaireo also operates addiction recovery houses, for both men and women. Individuals can apply directly to us or can be referred from other agencies. We also enable people to access our offices whilst they are on our waiting list, or after they have successfully moved on into a permanent home. The referral and interview process will help us to devise a support plan and help the individual to overcome their barriers. We are funded through housing benefit which is generally paid directly to us, and grants and donations. There is no charge to our service users. Food is collected from our local M&S on weekday evenings and distributed to our residents, sometimes this is directly to them at home, but more commonly the food is taken immediately to our office base and stored appropriately in a fridge or freezer as necessary. Any of our 54 residents can then access the food available each day during office hours - a bit like a community larder/fridge. We also offer sandwiches and other donated food to homeless individuals that access our office for support. We also support a number of former residents that also access the food regularly. This can be a vital lifeline for them.

We are a two form primary school and we are always grateful of any donations or help from volunteers. We run a breakfast and afterschool club, always in need of play equipment for lunchtimes and appreciate any help from volunteers.