Support from Dunns Food and Drinks is helping homelessness charity The Talbot Association expand its work with the launch of a trauma-informed recovery hub in the city.
The Talbot Association, one of Glasgow’s longest-standing homelessness charities and the city’s largest provider of homeless accommodation, is developing The Lighthouse Project at its Kingston Halls base. The new hub is designed to help vulnerable residents move beyond emergency accommodation by offering counselling, meaningful activities and employability support as part of a longer-term recovery pathway.
Through a partnership with Glasgow Clyde College, trainee counsellors will be involved in delivering support through the project. The programme will also include arts, mindfulness, digital inclusion and employability training. People with lived experience of homelessness will also help shape future services delivered through the hub.
Dunns Food and Drinks, which is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year, has backed the charity through donations and fundraising. That support also helps The Talbot Association continue to provide around 200,000 meals annually, despite receiving no dedicated public funding for food provision.
Julie Dunn, managing director of Dunns Food and Drinks, said, “The Talbot Association has been part of Glasgow’s social fabric for decades. They provide not only safe accommodation, but dignity, care and food to people who would otherwise go without.
“We are proud to support the charity and the incredible work it does. The Lighthouse Project is an important next step in helping people rebuild their lives.”
Michael O’Neill, deputy chief executive and director of development at The Talbot Association, said, “We have been quietly supporting Glasgow for more than 50 years, but many people don’t realise the scale of what happens inside our buildings.
“We belong to Glasgow, and the people we support belong to Glasgow. The Lighthouse Project is about creating a space where recovery is possible – it’s about more than providing a bed for the night. Our aim is to offer meaningful support that helps people move forward.
“Providing around 200,000 meals every year would not be possible without the generosity and partnership of organisations like Dunns, whose support is vital in helping us continue this work.”
Founded in 1970, The Talbot Association began as a soup kitchen responding to homelessness in Glasgow. It now operates six supported accommodation services across the city. Fundraising for The Lighthouse Project is ongoing, with the charity aiming to open the hub in the coming months.
Dunns’ latest fundraising initiative will see chairman Jim Rowan take on a sponsored cycle in Sri Lanka this month to raise awareness of The Talbot Association’s work.