In 1998, the Worcestershire Youth Service held a conference on youth homelessness, attended by a group of young people from the county. Many of them had been homeless or had grown up in care. They told the conference that there was little or no support for them in Bromsgrove. As a result, professionals attending the conference (from the local voluntary, statutory and private sectors), together with County and District Councillors, set up the Bromsgrove Youth Homelessness Forum. The Forum registered as a charity in September 2000 and is now also a registered company. In August 2010, the forum changed its name to North Worcestershire Basement Projects (operating as The Basement Project) to reflect the fact that the work supported young people from across North Worcestershire. The Basement Project was located in the basement of the local Baptist Church until flooding caused the trustees to seek new premises in Hanover Street.
Today, North Worcestershire Basement Projects is still based in Bromsgrove but now provides support across the whole of Worcestershire to homeless and potentially homeless young people up to the age of 25.
Our support is shaped by and for local young people.
The support provided through the project:
- Prevents and addresses homelessness
- Provides a family mediation service when needed
- Develops young people’s independence, living skills and confidence
- Supports young people to overcome disadvantage, homelessness and other challenge
- Helps young people to achieve a positive future.
Types of Support
Some young people come to the Basement Project for one-off support, but many young people need longer-term support to address the issues and disadvantages they face.
Our Floating Support Service is for young people in need of more intensive support to maintain a new tenancy. We support young people to access services available from other organisations and refer them to other organisations when appropriate.
Some of the organisations we work with regularly include:
- Bromsgrove District Housing Trust
- St Basil’s
- YMCA
- Nightstop
Our support is:
Person-Centred: Young people set their own goals.
Empowering: We work together with young people to achieve their goals.
Trauma-Informed: We recognise the impact of the complex events that may have affected a young person’s life. We respond appropriately, reducing the need for them to retell their story multiple times to different professionals, reducing the risk of re-traumatisation.
Positive: We provide an inclusive and non-judgmental environment.