High Sheriff drops in on the Salvation Army

HIGH Sheriff of Cheshire Mark Mitchell has visited the Salvation Army Lifehouse in Warrington to meet with people experiencing a period of homelessness.
He dropped in at James Lee House on Brick Street, to learn about life on the front line from a charity that supports the most vulnerable members of the local community.
Matthew Davenport, service manager at James Lee House said: “We were so grateful that the High Sheriff took the time out of his busy schedule to come and visit James Lee House to see the work we do with the local community. It was a pleasure to have him and to bring very real, local issues to his attention.
“The visit had a positive impact on our residents and allowed us to show the High Sheriff the measures and opportunities that we put in place for the members of our community that have been vulnerable in the past and having to deal with the many challenges that homelessness brings.”
Residents spoke to Mr Mitchell about the issues that had led to them experiencing homelessness and he learnt about the help and support that the international Christian church and charitable organisation gives to Warrington including through its weekly art classes which saw funding received to deliver a project to raise awareness of the dangers of illegal money lending.
He said: “What a tremendous encouragement it is to visit James Lee House and spend time experiencing all that they do and offer for local people that find themselves in difficult periods of their life. The care and professionalism shown by the team, across all departments, working with residents to get them back into independent living, was impressive.
“One of the highlights was the art workshop and seeing how art can be used as therapy to open discussions about issues that could affect vulnerable members of the community that may find themselves in the wrong place.
“The Stop Loan Sharks project is just one example; the difficulties illegal money lenders present is something that should be talked about.”
A grant, of £3,800 from Birmingham City Council, was awarded to James Lee House from the England Illegal Money Lending Team (IMLT) to raise awareness of loan sharks throughout the local community.