Food, shelter and dignity.
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The three needs the Bendigo Winter Night Shelter aims to meet for its guests each year.
Now in its fourth year, the program will start on June 1 and run until August 31.
Bendigo Winter Night Shelter chair Terry Westaway said volunteers worked with about 100 people in 2019 who were suffering some form of homelessness with the program able to help guests find long-term benefits.
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"We had six people find private accommodation that came through the program last year," he said.
"We had four who found jobs and a number of other people who found community relating to the church groups and people that were hosting. So it can be transformational. It certainly meets a need.
"The need is there. People shouldn't be doing it tough because of the circumstances of life. We're a wealthy society, which we can share some of that around."
Mr Westaway said the needs always feed back to food, shelter and dignity.
"We try to meet those needs," he said. "So they've got a nice safe, warm place to sleep. They're getting a hot nourishing meal in the evening. They get bussed to a breakfast point and have a cooked breakfast if they want and they've got a sandwich or a piece of fruit to take with them.
"We found from experience that if we've got a bit less churn in the program, we actually achieve some better results for the people because they've had a longer interaction here.
Bendigo Baptist Community Care chief executive Matthew Parkinson said if people suffering homelessness were ready to engage with the Winter Night Shelter, it would provide great benefits.
"If they have got a bed every night and are getting fed, you can see the changes," he said.
"Weight goes back on and their faces fill out and the trust comes in, which means we are able to get medical and psychological support.
"We are able to wrap services around them. The Winter Night Shelter gives that focus for the winter period."
Mr Parkinson said BBCC had thrown more effort into combating homelessness and rough sleepers in Bendigo at the beginning of 2021.
"A lot of good organisations are doing food relief and we felt these people were left behind during the pandemic," he said. "We have been dealing with them and the numbers are growing in terms them seeking us out.
"It's about understanding where they are at. Sometimes we are just a circuit breaker for someone who is nearly homeless.
"It felt like no one was looking after them from day to day. We are about helping them get ready for more permanent accommodation if they have been on the street a while."
Haven Home Safe general manager support services north Donna Gillard said collaborative work between the organisations was leading to more opportunities for better outcomes for people sleeping rough in the region.
"Our teams have noticed that people participating in the program feel supported through the certainty of having somewhere to sleep in the cold weather," she said.
"The connection with support workers and other members of the community (also) bolsters their confidence to take the next steps to finding more permanent accommodation."
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Mr Parkinson said BBCC sees about 45 rough sleepers each day even if it is just for a cup of tea and a chat.
"We know of around about 100 rough sleepers but the census data is old," he said. "Maybe about half to 60 per cent of those rough sleepers, we see on a regular basis.
"Their reasons for sleeping rough are so diverse but many have strong links to a family breakdown. Sometimes it can be drug or alcohol related but that's not the main reason."
Winter Night Shelter was first launched in the UK by Stable One in 2016 before reaching Bendigo in 2019.
This year, Koolamurt Park Scout Camp in Spring Gully will provide shelter for 70 of the 92 nights of winter with other Bendigo churches also offering assistance.
Mr Westaway said there is also a need for more than 300 volunteers - who will receive training - to lend a hand during the program.
Up to 16 volunteers are needed each night to assist guests and supervise them.
"Obviously the same people can't do that for the three months," Mr Westaway said. "It's between 15 and 16 people (per night) and if you multiply that by 92, that's how many shifts you got to fill through winter.
"Normally we have good support but you find it goes up and down if people have moved away or are feeling a bit frail in health. So you're always needing to bring new people on."
For more details on volunteering for the Bendigo Winter Night Shelter visit bwns.org.au or email char@bwns.org.au
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