STELRAD HELPS THE HOMELESS KEEP WARM AT NEW SHILOH CENTRE FOR THE HOMELESS IN ROTHERHAM

Stelrad has been able to help a local charity with a donation of much needed new radiators to help keep its new premises warm in colder weather.

With Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council (RMBC) deciding not to renew the five-year lease for Millfold House in Rotherham which has been home to the Shiloh Centre for homeless and vulnerable adults, Shiloh was in need of a new building to continue the work it has undertaken with partner organisations for the last 23 years.

As a show of support and in recognition of the contribution that Shiloh has made to the local community for more than two decades in the town, Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council offered alternative accommodation at the Weighbridge Building on Station Road in Rotherham. RMBC has offered a generous 25-year lease under a Community Asset Transfer scheme with a peppercorn rent payable. Shiloh is open 3 days a week – every Monday, Wednesday and Friday – and typically registers up to 600 new ‘guests’ each year, provides 20,000 hot meals and more than 3,000 ‘services’ each year – everything from showers and clothing, laundry facilities and hairdressing to counselling, training, benefits advice, support for housing and access to healthcare. It offers activities to help with self-esteem, socialisation and mental health support. The help provided is vital to the community.

But the new building was not designed for this new purpose and whilst the new building is 45% larger than the old centre, it needed refurbishment to allow it to offer the services that are so important to so many people. RMBC along with Shiloh and two major construction companies – Willmott Dixon and the Mears Group – have partnered to fund the refurbishment with the two construction companies undertaking the work. The Probation Service also offered help with general work and decoration of the building.

One of the things the new building needed was a new heating system to keep the ‘guests’ warm all year round. A vital part of the heating system is the means of sharing the heat around the building and local employer Stelrad Radiators, based a few miles away in Mexborough has donated nine of its modern, energy efficient Elite radiators to do just that. Five large radiators have been installed in the dining hall which provides hot meals for around 60 homeless and vulnerable adults each day, two have been installed in the large commercial kitchen, one in the shower room and one in the dedicated medical room.

John McDonnell is the Chairman of Shiloh Rotherham: “We’re really grateful to everyone that has helped us to refit the building to make it comfortable for our ‘guests’. The radiators from Stelrad are a welcome gift that will provide heat in the main rooms where we need it. We can’t say thank you enough to Stelrad for stepping in at the last minute when we were let down by another supplier – their radiators will make all the difference to us.

“We continue to build on the strong links we have with other services in the area and this means we can nearly always manage to find accommodation the same day for any homeless person who comes into Shiloh. But its important these people can relax in comfort whilst we try to address their needs.”

“We were happy to be able to help in this project,” said Lisa Chambers, HR Manager at Stelrad. “We have a long history of helping out when we can in these sorts of situations and this one is very close to our home in Mexborough, so makes it even more special for us to be able to provide some support. Shiloh Rotherham does a great job and provides much needed support and facilities for the people it sets out to help, which increasingly is unavailable from any other source. We’re happy to recognise and support the work they do.”

Shiloh Rotherham relies on the volunteering strength brought to it by around 60 people in the Rotherham area who give their time and expertise for free. It’s an award winning Christian Charity that offers warmth, practical support, and pathways to a meaningful, self-reliant life for adults in need, regardless of their beliefs.

For more information on the work Shiloh Rotherham offers go to www.shilohrotherham.org.uk.