One of our most important projects at St Luke’s is our annual cold weather shelter. Each January to March (the coldest three months of the year), we join forces with six other local churches to offer dinner, bed and breakfast to a number of homeless people – each church taking one day a week.

The Nightshelter is a project that involves many members and friends of the church, and we’d love as many people as possible to get involved. Volunteers are needed for evening, overnight and morning shifts every Saturday (into Sunday), and making dinner and breakfast for guests. We also need help with the laundry each week, people to run entertainment and activities for guests, and help with various other behind-the-scenes tasks.

This year’s Nightshelter starts in a couple of weeks’ time and Dan Northam Jones, who oversees St Luke’s part of the project, is busy drawing up rotas and making sure everything is in place to ensure this year’s project runs as smoothly as possible. If you’d like to help or find out what’s involved, please speak to Dan or email him at daniel.northamjones@googlemail.com. The first two weeks are now staffed, but there are plenty of slots to fill after that, particularly the overnight shifts. It’s great to sign up with a friend – many hands make light work, and having a buddy makes the experience less daunting (although there’ll be plenty of support for volunteers).

Nightshelter is also on the lookout for donations of clothes (especially warm clothes, jackets, socks, shoes and jumpers for men). Toiletries (toothbrushes, toothpaste, razors etc) are also needed, and any donations will be gratefully received.

Dan is also keen to hear from anyone with fundraising or sponsorship ideas to help cover the costs of the project.