FAQ
The coldest months put people experiencing homelessness at significantly higher risk. That's why we prioritise getting people into emergency accommodation and preparing our winter night shelter (opens in January), distributing emergency provisions, and delivering long-term prevention and housing support. This approach helps people stay safe during winter and gives them a real chance of moving into stable accommodation.
We don’t recruit volunteers specifically for Christmas. Our festive period is focused on maintaining ongoing services and coordinating with partner organisations who run Christmas events locally. However, the winter night shelter that opens in January is one of our biggest projects — it needs a reliable, compassionate team. Volunteer roles include welcoming guests, helping with meals, keeping the space warm and safe, and offering a calm, friendly presence. These roles make a bigdifference to people on very cold nights.
We do need help for our winter night shelter which opens in winter.
Volunteer for the winter night shelter
Thank you — your support matters. The most effective way to help is to fundraise or donate, so we can continue prevention, emergency support and housing work throughout the year. Seasonal gifts (food parcels, warm items, or treats) are also welcome when we’ve published specific needs, but long-term funding and regular donations enable us to plan and
provide consistent support beyond December. Ways to donate
See our winter shelter FAQ here.
- If the person appears under 18, or is in immediate danger or needs urgent medical attention, call 999.
- Submit a report to Streetlink. Streetlink gathers timely information about people sleeping rough and passes it to local outreach
teams so someone can check on them and offer help. Submit a Streetlink alert - Contact us
No. Emergency accommodation and local host placements are always free. There are no nightly charges, deposits or booking fees for people found to be homeless. If someone asks for money for shelter, encourage them to contact services directly so they can be referred to the right provision. You can also submit a Streetlink alert so local teams can
reach out.
Direct them to: Contact us or Streetlink
We do not operate a year-round shelter, but we provide a range of emergency options across the year and run a winter night shelter when required. We also support people to access council emergency accommodation and partner programmes.
The reality is there are not enough places for everyone who becomes homeless, and there remains a shortage of safe, affordable long-term housing which is why prevention and rehousing support are core parts of our work. That is why we focus a lot of our effort on homelessness prevention. Learn more about our services:
Yes and thank you. To make sure donations are useful, we only request certain items at certain times (specific sizes, types and quantities). This helps us distribute items that genuinely meet people’s needs without creating excess or waste. Check our current list of required goods before donating:
All ways to give are listed here:
Donate to WHC
We have a variety of volunteer roles throughout the year and right now need 100 volunteers to add to our team to open the winter night shelter.
Find out more about volunteering at the winter night shelter - don't delay!
Opportunities include outreach, practical support, and night shelter teams. Roles are updated regularly; follow our volunteer page and sign up for our newsletter to receive the latest opportunities.
Volunteer roles
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