ADAM Phillips is one of four outreach workers for St Petrocs whose job it is to make first contact with people in Cornwall who are rough sleeping or at risk of homelessness and have a conversation about how the charity could help.

Covering a large area of the east of the county from Torpoint and Saltash across to Bodmin, St Austell, Padstow, Bude, and the Devon border, Adam spends a lot of time on the road visiting libraries, churches, pubs and town centres, meeting people and making himself known, and keeping a watchful eye out for tents or other signs that a person is sleeping rough.

Referrals can also come from the council or family and friends – and people seeking help can also ring the charity or walk in to the Truro drop-in centre.

“You’ve got the stereotypical homeless person, sleeping in a doorway, that has been through a difficult situation and ended up on the street, but really, this is just what the public sees, and what people might think of as homelessness,” says Adam. “The truth is that that is just the tip of the iceberg, it’s about 1%. There are many other situations: sofa surfing is massive, it’s a huge issue.

“There are also families where they’ve been working all their lives and paying rent on time, but then all of a sudden the landlord is selling up, and now they don’t have anywhere to go.”

Separations are also a big factor, says his colleague Mike Radford: “A couple who’ve been together many moons, when the relationship ends you’ve got two people living in a house and one of them is going to have to leave – with the cost of living, we are picking up the pieces of that relationship break down.”

St Petrocs works hard to prevent people ever being forced to sleep rough, so part of Adam’s role is to intercept those at risk.

Once Adam has had an initial interview with a person, if they seem a good fit for one of St Petrocs’ 22 properties, they’ll then meet Mike or one of the other supported accommodation officers for a pre-tenancy interview.

The houses across Cornwall provide a “safe place for a person to land, and time to reset,” says Mike. When a person moves into a St Petrocs house it’s for a maximum of two years, but it’s not just a roof over their head: the charity provides continual support through and after the stay. The end goal is always that a person moves on into independent accommodation. Support takes the shape of helping a person gain financial and other life skills, counselling, and the reassurance of having one of the accommodation officers on-call 24 hours. St Petrocs also runs a vocational development programme to build employment skills, as well as being able to put people in touch with a host of other agencies that can help.

The Liskerett centre office in Liskeard provides a valuable resource for anyone in the north and east of the county who is in a vulnerable housing situation – it’s not a drop-in, but by appointment with Adam, people have access to a warm place to shower, eat, and wash clothes. It also acts as a useful hub location where Adam and Mike can bring together other agencies to meet with the people that need assistance.

“St Petrocs is expanding because the need, unfortunately is there,” says Adam. “It’s a sad indictment of our times that we have 150 bed spaces and all of them are full, with a waiting list.”

St Petrocs relies on the support of the public to carry out its vital work. 

To find out more and donate to the winter appeal visit www.stpetrocs.org.uk

If you, or somebody you know, needs help, call 01872 264153.