Our Mission
We want to end homelessness
We exist To make all homelessness in Worcester temporary by design
Our vision is that everyone has a place where they belong, so that Worcester is a place where homelessness is rare, brief and seldom reoccurring.
To bring a sense of immediacy & action to the causes, symptoms & effects of homelessness.
We recognise that ending homelessness is a tall order and requires it to be a shared national priority not only alongside changes to national government and local policies. Locally we want Worcestershire to be a leader in the ending of rough sleeping and ‘designing out’ homelessness. At St Paul’s we use trauma as a lens through which we look to understand why a person arrives at our door. In our experience, trauma, often from early life relationships and often recurring, is prevalent in many of the people who come to us for help.
We recognise the damage trauma can do to the character of a person and the negative effect it has on the choices they have. In reversing these effects we have learnt that trust is the essential ingredient.
Our pillars for change
Recover
Reconnect
Prevent
- Recover
- Reconnect
- Prevent
Our pillars for change
Recover
Building relationships and resilience are key to recovery.
St Paul’s experienced support workers help people recover from homelessness, offering rare consistency in a changing sector. This stability builds trust, essential for those with trauma.
Our team’s skills include harm reduction, trauma-informed practice, safeguarding, and crisis response. Through compassionate, person-centred support, they help residents feel safe and take positive steps.
Peer supporters, with lived experience of homelessness, reduce isolation, build trust, and show that change is possible.
- 32% of people suffering with homelessness is due to exclusion by family and friends
- 25% of our residents take time to volunteer in the hostel carrying our meaningful work and development.
Our pillars for change
Reconnect
Friendships, help, and support are essential for an interdependent life.
Social resilience sustains recovery, helping people leave homelessness and thrive. It’s about reconnection, not just housing, addressing isolation, lost trust, and disconnection.
At St Paul’s Hostel, we build social resilience through relationships, coping skills, and positive engagement. Friendship restores a sense of belonging, purpose, and identity.
Through peer support, shared activities, and staff guidance, residents rebuild trust, feel valued, and gain confidence to re-engage with society via volunteering, work, or community life.
- 33% of our residents have successfully moved on (reinstated relationships with family, independent accommodation, supported accommodation)
- 5% have enrolled into a rehab program
Our pillars for change
Prevent
At St Paul’s, we provide more than a bed, we help build foundations for lasting change.
Our team supports residents through trauma-informed care, consistent relationships, and access to health, housing, and community services, helping them regain stability and confidence. We prepare residents for life beyond the hostel by reducing isolation, building resilience, and ensuring long-term support.
Preventing homelessness is key, but is constrained by policies, resources, housing availability, and service capacity. St Paul’s collaborates with partners, including The Homelessness Forum and Worcester Cares, to develop strategic responses and address rough sleeping. We also value insights from Making Every Adult Matter, utilising coproduction to enhance service design for individuals facing homelessness and multiple disadvantages.
- 89.5% of residents have a known offending history.
- However, 73.5% is historic or no recent history (beyond 5 years) – offending directly declines during time at St Paul’s.
A Place to Belong
A Place to Belong
St Paul’s is an independent charity, which brings urgency, compassion, and practical solutions to the causes, symptoms, and effects of homelessness. Founded in 1977 by the Worcester Council of Churches, St Paul’s Hostel was created in direct response to the growing number of people sleeping rough and experiencing the disadvantage, isolation, and trauma that too often come before and during homelessness.
Today, we provide accommodation and support for 46 adults experiencing homelessness, alongside two flats and two resettlement houses, offering people a pathway to improved wellbeing and more independent living.
At St Paul’s, we reject the idea that homelessness is just one missed wage packet away. While homelessness can happen to anyone, some people are far more at risk than others.
Our Vision
Everyone has a place where they belong.
We are committed to designing out homelessness — making it rare, brief, and non-recurring in Worcestershire.
Our Values
At St Paul’s, we work with people facing deep marginalisation, trauma, and disadvantage. These values underpin how we show up, how we make decisions, and how we hold ourselves accountable.
Our Values
Integrity
We act. People come to us in crisis and they need support that’s reliable, real, and rooted in action. Our team takes responsibility and stays focused on doing the work, that needs to be done.
Justice
We challenge the idea that homelessness is inevitable or acceptable. We confront indifference in systems and attitudes, and advocate for people where barriers exist.
Collaboration
We know we can’t do this alone. Our best work happens in partnership - with residents, with agencies, and with our community. We invest in relationships that make change possible.
Respect
We walk alongside people, not ahead of them. We believe everyone has strengths and potential - and we support people to build trust, rediscover their value, and make changes at their own pace.
Equity
We create the conditions where people can make meaningful choices - often for the first time in their lives. That means tackling barriers, offering tailored support, and expecting different outcomes.
Accountability
We’re honest about what we can and can’t do. We work within our limits, stay grounded in reality, and communicate openly - with residents, partners, and each other.
