Mobilising our community to end homelessness.
Our winter night shelter will be open in January, February and March 2027. People living on the street in south Buckinghamshire, and who have no other options, will be offered shelter.
Homelessness is high in Buckinghamshire and despite the call in autumn 2026 for 'everyone in' before Christmas, too many people will still fall outside the help offered by local authorities.
That's where we come in. We offer shelter to the people who would be forced to sleep outside in the winter.
"Without the shelter I’d literally have been sleeping on the street." ~ shelter guest
Read on to find out how it works and what you can do to help.
How the shelter works.
The shelter is kindly hosted at seven churches in or close to High Wycombe town centre.
Beds, a place to eat and an area for socialising are set up. We use the calm and warm environment to work with our guests to help them find a home for good. Everything possible is done to avoid anyone having to return to life on the street when the shelter closes. We don't stop there, we offer all year round support.
Our guests, staff and volunteers share a hot evening meal and there is time for chatting, playing games, laundry, showers, and resting. Our support workers visit the shelter, as well as welcoming our guests in to our Support Centre on Castle Street during the day, to work on their situations and opportunities. A volunteer team stays the night and makes sure everyone gets a good night’s sleep. The morning team wakes guests, sort breakfast, and clear up the venue.
There are three shifts at the seven venues: Evening 6pm - 10pm, Night 9.30pm - 7am, Morning: 6.30am - 8am.
There are also daytime jobs: Drivers are needed to drive the van to and from the shelter for the start and end of each night and we need volunteers to help with laundry.
6pm: Our evening team, including our volunteer driver set up the venue and have a briefing.
7pm: Shelter guests are welcomed, allocated a bed and settled in. Hot drinks and biscuits are on offer.
8pm: Everyone sits together and shares a hot home-cooked meal prepared by volunteer cooks. Guests can play games, read the paper, chat or get an early night. We also offer hot showers and laundry facilities.
10pm: A smaller team of volunteers stay overnight, taking it in turns to sleep and be on hand.
6.30am: The morning team arrive to offer our guests breakfast and get ready for the day.
7.30am: Guests are offered food and drink to take away and the volunteer team pack up.
Volunteers needed!
It takes 350 volunteers from across our community to run the winter night shelter.
All volunteers must be over 18 years old and will complete a criminal record self-disclosure form.
There are daytime roles as well as roles making the shelter venues run.
Training is provided whatever your role and the skills learned and certificates gained can be used elsewhere in life.
We always need more Shift Leaders and hosts for the night and morning teams.
Have a read of all the different roles and see what might suit you!
Next steps: sign up to volunteer
New volunteers need to fill out an application form. Click here.
Returning volunteers need to log in to CERViS, our volunteer database, and tell us how you want to help. Click here.
Don't delay! Training for everyone starts mid-October and we'll be asking you to pledge your shifts in November.
The shelter opens on Monday 5 January 2026.
Read on to find out why a shelter is so needed this winter and why your volunteering matters.
Every year, hundreds of people become homeless in south Buckinghamshire.
The causes of homelessness are wide ranging and can include:
- Breakdown of a relationship or family
- Increasing housing costs
- People leaving prison or the armed forces with nowhere to go
- People escaping abusive and violent relationships
- Unfair or illegal evictions
- People facing immigration related barriers
- People with poor physical and mental health
- People living in poverty with no savings to fall back on
This is all happening while there is a severe shortage of affordable housing and an increasingly unforgiving welfare system.
If that's the case, why don't we run an all-year round shelter?
While night shelters can never replace a permanent home, they play a vital role in saving lives during the coldest months. Thanks to the generosity of local churches offering their buildings, and the many volunteers who bring warmth and community, our winter shelter provides a safe place to stay at a time of year when it is most needed.
Because these venues are not designed for long-term living, we do not currently run the shelter all year round. Instead, we focus our resources on making the winter night shelter the very best it can be and, at the same time, helping every guest work towards a more secure future. Our specialist workers take time with each person to understand their situation and their hopes, supporting them to move into a home of their own when the shelter closes.
Alongside this, Wycombe Homeless Connection is working with the council and charity partners to explore options for more permanent accommodation for those who need it. Until then, our priority is to provide safety through the winter and to do all we can to help people move on from homelessness for good.
Do you have more questions? Check out our FAQs and our client and volunteer stories.