A drive-in movie night at Ipswich’s Trinity Park is to be held to help launch a new charity with the ambitious goal of “ending homelessness” in East Anglia.
The Drive in for Hope event on Friday, October 9 between 7pm and 11pm, is being organised by the Flagship Group to raise funds for Hopestead, the housing association’s new charity designed to help eradicate homelessness in the region.
Places like Ipswich are braced for a stark rise in homelessness this winter, with the financial hardship and job losses caused by the coronavirus crisis expected to cause many more to be rough sleeping or sofa surfing with friends and relatives.
People like Jools Ramsey, chief executive of Ipswich Housing Action Group (IHAG) - which runs the Chapman Centre for homeless people – said: “With a financial crisis already underway, it is highly likely the numbers of people seeking our support will increase dramatically.”
MORE: Ipswich braced for dramatic rise in homelessness this winter from aftershock of coronavirus
Flagship has therefore launched Hopestead with the aim of preventing, reducing and alleviating homelessness in East Anglia by working with other charities and local authorities.
Marie-Claire Delbrouque, managing director of Hopestead, said: “We believe everyone deserves a place to call home and our goal at Hopestead is to end homelessness in the East of England.
MORE: New four-bedroom house for homeless people in Ipswich
“We know this is a big challenge. But by tackling the causes of homelessness and working in partnership with like-minded organisations already working hard to eradicate homelessness, we believe we can meet that challenge.
“Now more than ever we are seeing people and communities struggling – which is why the role of Hopestead is so vital.
“We believe that we have a fundamental responsibility to end homelessness – including working to prevent people losing their homes, such as the financial help that we were able to provide earlier this year during the pandemic.
“We know that ending homelessness matters because sustainable communities benefit absolutely everyone.
“We believe passionately in our purpose and we are looking forward to working with partners and organisations with a common interest to bring about this change for good – because we believe that everyone deserves a place to call home.”
Of the drive-in movie night, where The Greatest Showman will be screened in a Covid-secure environment, Ms Delbrouque said: “To mark our launch, we wanted to connect people – safely – because we believe in community.
“And what better way than through a film which is universal and unifying.
MORE: Drive-in movies at Trinity Park help create ‘normal’ weekend fun
“Drive in for Hope will not only be a fantastic evening, but it will also allow us to raise vital funds that we can use to support those in need.
“Please do join us.”
Tickets are on sale now and are available from www.hopestead.org
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