In February 2020, I moved house. My timing was impeccable. A substantial house and garden project was a fantastic way to absorb time during lockdown. The process of meeting my neighbours was accelerated by the NHS clap and the opportunity to join ‘The road WhatsApp group’. Membership allowed me to lurk quietly in the shadows, becoming familiar with the more active names.
Then as the lockdown eased, a ‘road party’ was suggested. This proved the first of several gatherings. These are simple affairs. People bring a chair and a drink and share stories about when they moved in, how they’ve found lockdown, gardening, home schooling, bin collections, the habits of the local cats. Apparently there’s even a heron nearby. A combination of Whatsapp, the vicinity of everyone to each other and a strong appetite for in-person socialising is a powerful mix.
We are coming out of this crisis and blinking towards the sun. As our eyes are becoming accustomed to the light, we can see what has changed as well as what is the same. At home, I appear to have found myself living on a very friendly road, which gives me a great sense of wellbeing and belonging. At work, The Connection has not only survived, but is moving ahead in all sorts of ways. Our new services launched last week – and I’m incredibly proud of what we are delivering for our clients.
Rough sleeping is, sadly but predictably, returning to central London. However, numbers are lower and The Connection’s triage, brief interventions and more intensive case work is there to help in new ways. Our emergency accommodation is now running in a separate building ‘The Bridge’.
Once we had adapted to remote working and social distancing last year, The Connection continued some of our ‘behind the scenes’ projects. We are developing St Martin’s House, working closely with the Trust. We have a partnership project with Solace Women’s Aid to create a London-wide strategy to support homeless women. We have plans for communications, fundraising, enterprise and IT.
I am determined to take forward all that is positive from the experiences of the past 18 months, whilst acknowledging the loss and sadness. I saw many of you over zoom and it was fantastic to see people in person last week as we said our goodbyes and thanks to Ally Hargreaves. The Connection is re-engaging with the wider St Martin’s site as we all move on and recover. We look forward to seeing you.
Pam Orchard
