Free voicemail service for homeless people available outside London

VoiceMail4All, the free voicemail service for anyone who is homeless, is now available outside of London.

The service – provided by leading homelessness charity St Mungo’s, on behalf of Tech4All, the charity that uses technology to fight poverty – is now available in Brighton & Hove and Leeds.

It means that any homeless person without a phone in those cities can get a voicemail account completely free of charge where they can collect messages about jobs, housing, appointments, or simply re-connect with family and friends.

Set up in July 2005, VoiceMail4All has already been used by over 2,400 people in London and several have already registered for the services in Brighton and Leeds.

Those who register will get an 0208 (London), 01273 (Brighton) or 0113 (Leeds) pre-fixed phone number on which they can record a personal greeting, and their own 0800 number to call so they can listen to their messages from any phone box or landline.

Agencies working with homeless people are also able to use the service to inform clients of important upcoming events or opportunities in their area, helping homeless people stay connected with services.

Many people using the service find it invaluable.

Fred, a resident in one of St Mungo’s hostels in London and a new client with VoiceMail4All, finds it hard to keep in contact with his son and daughter. At present he relies on letters to stay in touch with appointments, or asks people to leave messages for him at the hostel reception. He said: “It’s not easy to stay in touch. Mobiles are expensive as well. The VoiceMail4All service will be very useful.”

Laura Rumley, the VoiceMail4All Co-ordinator at St Mungo’s, said: “VocieMail4All has helped so many homeless people in London get their lives back on track. We are thrilled to be able to extend this invaluable service to homeless people in other parts of the country. We hope this is just the beginning.”

Giles Keating, Chair of Trustees of Tech4All said: “In this age of communication I am pleased we can now offer homeless people outside of London the very real benefits this service has to offer. VoiceMail4All gives homeless people a fixed point of contact and has already helped thousands of homeless people in London.”

In Brighton the service is funded by Brighton &Hove Council under an innovation fund through a Government grant and the service is run by Sussex Central YMCA.

Brighton Councillor Maria Caulfield, said: “Having a phone is vital to everyday life for most of us. But it’s especially important for homeless residents as they need to maintain vital contacts to get them back on their feet.”

In Leeds, St Anne’s Community Services commissioned the service and will run it along with St George’s Crypt a local charity for homeless people.

Ann Sunter, Area Manager Homeless Services and Substance Use Services at St Anne’s, said: “We are very pleased to be able to offer this service to homeless people and are excited to see the positive difference that providing VoiceMail4All will make.”