Homelessness Charity "MoCoCo House" Officially Opened
CharityFriday 27th February marked the official opening of MoCoCo House, a Cheshire based homelessness charity, which has been the beneficiary of on-site professional expertise, building materials and cash grants from Bauder and CRASH - the construction industries’ chosen charity for homeless people.
The ambitious project involved transforming a former coffee shop into nine self-contained bedsits for young homeless adults as well as a warden flat, a training room and a small laundry room. The first stage of this large scale project was to ensure that the building was watertight; therefore CRASH called upon Bauder to undertake a comprehensive roof survey and then awarded the project a cash grant of £10,000 towards the required roof repairs, which were performed by Bauder approved contractor FRS Roofing Services. Supplies for the internal fixtures and furnishings were donated and fitted by other CRASH patron members and were all completed just in time to welcome MoCoCo House’s first resident, a young man leaving local authority care because his foster carers were retiring.
While the number of 16 to 24 year olds accepted as homeless by local authorities has steadily decreased since 2006, there has been a recent rise in the number of 18 to 20 year old care leavers accepted as homeless. This fact is just one of the reasons why Bauder and CRASH decided to provide such extensive support to MoCoCo House. The issues that lead to homelessness and the needs of young people experiencing homelessness are becoming more complex. Once homeless, it is harder to move on.
MoCoCo House Centre Manager Jeanette Davidson said “MoCoCo House, which could not have been established without CRASH and its patrons, will provide a safe, secure and supportive environment to help homeless young adults grow and develop and be empowered to manage their own life for the future. Each young resident will be allocated a mentor and a keyworker to help them progress their independence skills and there will also be continued support available once a young person moves on depending on their needs.”