Page 7, 10th October 1986

10th October 1986

Page 7

Page 7, 10th October 1986 — In the shadow of Westminster Cathedral, the homeless thrive
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In the shadow of Westminster Cathedral, the homeless thrive

Cristina Odone visits the Passage and hears of a new venture in care
HE IS OLD, shabbily dressed, carrying a bin liner that bulges with what possessions he still clings to from his past life: a blanket, old newspapers (good insulation on cold nights spent in streets, on park benches) a hole-specked umbrella (which he picked out of a refuse basket at Black friars tube station). He has spent years walking through London, and knows the street plan better than any cabbie. He hasn't had a home since 1974, and he no longer remembers where that was.
The only shelter he knows of now lies in the shadow of Westminster Cathedral, a big, spacious building where last year alone, on any given day, he would find 300 other homeless men and women.
For the past six years, the Passage, a day-centre for the homeless that is run jointly by the Cathedral and the Daughters of Charity, has provided a roof, food and tea for those whom society brands as "tramps", "bag-ladies", "dossers", and "down and outs". The sisters who run the house also offer kind words, advice, expression of concern that for these social outcasts means more than any cuppa.
The sisters organise not only food and shelter, but clothes, too, that come as donations from around the country. And, as of this year, a major new programme is in the making: the former rest room in the Passage will be converted to cater for young people, equipping them with skills necessary for employment, and independence.
The project, to be funded by Urban Aid over the next five years, will include workshops, advice in job searching, and group discussions aimed at airing the issues of re-entry into a society that for many of these youths has always proved alien and closed.
As of this month, two members of the Passage staff will take charge of the new project: Group Development Worker, Tim Scott, and a Resettlement Worker, Sr Paula Sheehan. Both will work side by side with the (ever-increasing) young people who come to the Day Centre in search of a temporary shelter. For 60 per cent of these youths, according to a recent survey taken by the Sisters of Charity, "home" does not exist, and every night means sleeping in squats, trains, or garages.
If the number of youths found today in the Passage is far greater than during the first years of the shelter, the number of mentally disturbed homeless people now using the day centre has increased astronomically. With the National Health Service's recent policy of closing psychiatric hospitals, in favour of "Community Care", hundreds of former patients now fill the streets — with nowhere and no one to turn to.
At the Passage, the new wave of needy people find specialised help. The staff is assisted by nurses from Horton Hospital, who, while under-going psychiatric training, spend one month helping at the Centre. Staff and volunteer training sessions, covering every aspect of mental disorders, take place each month.
The physical disorders, too, are taken into account at the Day Centre, with two weekly surgeries now established, to cater for the infirm and those suffering from minor injuries.
Beacon light of this Passage is its founder, Sr Eileen 0' Mahony, who transformed the nineteenth century, Dickensian structure into a fully-equipped haven for those who seek solace. Until Sr Eileen opened the doors of the centre, the Piazza of the Cathedral had served as an informal meeting place for the homeless, much to the discomfort of the faithful, the tourists and the Westminster hierarchy. Not surprisingly, Sr Eileen's plans for a shelter, met with great enthusiasm from both the Archdiocese and the city council.
Enthusiasm which has found expression not only in lavish praise, but in funding, as well. Even when the Greater London Council closed last spring, the London Boroughs Grant Unit accepted to continue its financial support of the Passage enterprise, at the same level as during GLC days.
Because the need is great, and growing every year, and because the Sisters of Charity want to extend the aid they already give to those who seek their shelter, donations are always welcome — and in fact necessary.




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