Brighton & Hove City Council and its housing partners help lonely and vulnerable residents enjoy Christmas » Local Government » 24dash.com

A group of older vulnerable residents enjoy a Christmas meal at a popular Sicilian café; a resident with learning disabilities is to be reunited on the festive day with an old friend while a former alcoholic woman moves into her own flat after years of homelessness.

These Christmas stories tell how vulnerable residents in the city, who can suffer from isolation at this family-oriented time of year, are enjoying heartwarming festivities.

Brighton & Hove City Council and its partners Mencap Brighton and Brighton Housing Trust are helping vulnerable people who are not staying with their families enjoy Christmas. The services are provided through the multimillion pound Supporting People programme, which supports 5,000 vulnerable people.

Jimmy Walder, aged 55, has learning disabilities and stopped living with his family placement - Robert and his wife - two years ago.

“I have no family to stay with so I would have been bored and lonely this Christmas,” he says.

Since Robert’s wife died, he has lived in a nursing home in Haywards Heath as his dementia worsened. Jimmy and Mencap Brighton contacted the home to see if he could stay overnight as a taxi would have been prohibitively expensive.

“They said I could stay so I will be going up on Christmas Eve and returning on Boxing Day. I am very happy because I just don’t know how long Robert will be alive for.”

“I look forward to some good quality time with him and want to show him a scrap book that I have made of our lives.”

Kim, a 39 year old women with a long history of substance misuse and mental health issues, has moved into her first home for many years where she has already decorated her Christmas tree.

She is looking forward to celebrating her first sober Christmas for many years with her 19 year old son and is also cooking Christmas dinner at city centre homeless project First Base Day Centre. She is also returning to the project that helped her overcome her alcoholism the St Thomas Fund where she will cook Xmas dinner for those currently going through the programme.

“I wouldn’t be where I am now without these services so it’s the least I can do to help those currently getting support. Christmas is so hard for people trying to recover from alcoholism and for those who are homeless.”

Meanwhile, a group of Brighton Housing Trust residents celebrated in their own way by sharing a lunch together at a favourite café - Vito’s Italian deli and café in Hove.

The residents, who Vito has known for many years, hit upon the idea of an unconventional Christmas get together themselves with Vito serving a slice of food from his native Sicily.

For one of Brighton Housing Trust’s clients this will be the first Christmas in his own home as he has recently moved into a council flat after 10 years in shared accommodation.

Anne, aged 57, said: “We are all family here helping each other. Arranging the lunch helped seal our friendship and make Christmas special. None of us have got children so it’s great to go to Vito’s as they are like parents to us. Vito’s is a family run business and it makes us feel like a family.”

Councilor Maria Caulfield, Cabinet Member for Housing, said: “Christmas can be a particularly lonely time for some of our older residents. These stories are just some of many initiatives that the council and its partners are doing to try to ensure everyone has a festive time.”