At Wildheart, we care about much more than just Residential Management. Our amazing teams are a part of the local community, and giving back is at the heart of our values.

Touched by the plight of homeless people, our Eastbourne Assistant Property Manager, Denise, made it her mission to help. Since 2019, she has volunteered with Warming Up the Homeless, a frontline homeless charity serving the South East of England.

Warming Up the Homeless supports the homeless in Eastbourne and the surrounding areas by connecting them with support agencies, providing outreach support, food banks and welfare advocacy.

Rough sleeping has been increasing steadily since 2010, and with the current cost of living crisis, it shows no sign of slowing down. The work of volunteers like Denise is essential to making sure that no one goes thirsty, hungry or cold.

Wildheart Eastbourne – Denise’s Story

“5 years ago, I started to volunteer on the Eastbourne Outreach Round for Warming Up the Homeless. Back then, everything arrived in Trudy’s car, and if we helped 20 people while walking through the town, it was considered a busy night.

Now we have a fleet of vans and regularly see 70 people or more on each round – not just in Eastbourne but in Bexhill and Hastings, too.  We start our round on Eastbourne seafront, and there is always a queue of people waiting for us.  As well as hot food and drink, we hand out clothing, toiletries, non-perishable groceries and pet food for the dogs (and cats) that we see.  We are sometimes able to donate tents and sleeping bags, but for everything we give out, we rely on the generosity of our supporters.

Donation stations can be found in all the towns we serve, and there is one in the Eastbourne Wildheart office which has been a great success. Items donated are either used on the Outreach Rounds or sold in one of our charity shops to raise more funds.”

Items that you can donate at Wildheart offices include:

• New or excellent condition boxers, pants and socks.
• Clothes, including jeans, jumpers, footwear and jackets.
• Sleeping bags, essential for staying warm on the streets.
• Thermos flasks.
• Groceries, for example, cereal bars, fruit, water, biscuits, pot noodles etc.
• Toiletries, including new toothbrushes and toothpaste, soap and shower gel and sanitary products.
• Tea bags, coffee and hot chocolate sachets.
• Canned or dry pet food

If you would like to support Warming Up The Homeless, there are a variety of volunteer opportunities available that are suitable for individuals or groups of volunteers. These include Outreach Volunteering, Fundraising and Business Support.

To keep up with our latest community and volunteering news, make sure to follow us on LinkedIn.