We are looking forward to launching Bedford’s first and very own Tap to Donate machine to support the homeless. The donation machine will be accessible for the general public to give a sum of £3 per tap to Bedford’s Real Change Fund. The Mayor of Bedford is officially opening the machine on 29th November 2021 at 2.30pm at the site of the machine.

Money from the machine will be collected into the Real Change Fund, an emergency pot of money, hosted on our Bedford Homeless Partnership JustGiving page. These funds will be used by charity members of the Bedford Homeless Partnership to support them and homeless people. Up to £1k can be awarded for each request and money can go towards buying everyday necessities like sleeping bags, food, clothing and paying for services to support those homeless or at risk of homelessness.

The machine, which will be situated in the front window of IMPAKT Interiors store located at 14-15 The Arcade, Bedford MK40, will offer top line messaging about the partnership’s mission and aims. We will also include links to the Bedford Homeless Partnership website so that the public can find out more about the charities involved and the services they offer.

Bedford Borough Council’s report on homelessness:

• In 30 June 2021 there were 845 homelessness applications open with the Council, all requiring varying degrees of assistance
• Overall 557 people were placed in Temporary accommodation during 2020/2021, up from 390 in 2019/2020. There is a huge increase in people needing help during the last 12 months, largely due to the pandemic
• Unaffordable private rents, relationship breakdowns and domestic abuse cases are just a few of the most common reasons why people end up homeless.
• During the March and December 2020, during the initial lockdown periods of the covid pandemic 271 people were supported by charity Smart CJS with temporary accommodation during this period in Bedford as part of the Everyone In Initiative.

In 2018 Bedford had the 8th highest number of rough sleepers in the whole of England (per population size) which is one of the reasons our partnership was formed.

BedfordBID and The Mayors Community Chest Fund are funding the design and installation of the machine so every single penny donated by the public will go to our Real Change Fund.

Angela Foll, Chair of Bedford Homeless Partnership
‘’The collaboration between local organisations demonstrates that we are using all available resources to deliver services that meet as many needs as possible for our clients. We hope that by introducing the Tap to Donate machine this will increase the funds for our charities to help run their much-needed services whilst promoting awareness about our partnership and the charities who operate within it’’.

Kristy McMillan, Marketing Officer for Bedford Homeless Partnership
‘’It’s been fantastic to see how the Partnership have worked together alongside BedfordBID and Mayor Dave Hodgson’s team to deliver this really fantastic donation machine that will allow the community to give what they can at a time when so many local people are in need’’.

Mayor of Bedford, Dave Hodgson

"I am pleased to see the installation of a contactless donation point to enable people to donate to the Bedford Homeless Partnership and help those who are homeless or at risk of homelessness across Bedford Borough. I would encourage residents to come along to The Arcade and tap to make a donation whilst out doing their Christmas shopping in Bedford town centre."

Paul Hunt, CEO of IMPAKT

“As members of the Bedford Homeless Partnership, IMPAKT Housing & Support are delighted to be able to host the Give Tap console in our shop front at IMPAKT Interiors. It’s a great opportunity for the public to support the Homeless Partnership and to direct the funds to where they are most needed”.

Bedford Homeless Partnership has been in operation for over 4 years and during this time has contributed many thousands of pounds to charities in need in the local area. The Executive Committee of the partnership, which consists of 10 organisations, meet every other month to discuss the direction and best practices within the partnership. To be a member of the Bedford Homeless Partnership your service needs to be related to homelessness and delivered within Bedford Borough. The partnership is funded by The Harpur Trust and administrated by CVS Bedfordshire.

 

Tap & Donate is accessible within The Arcade during the retail opening times: 09.00 – 17.30 Monday – Saturday, and 11.00 – 16.00 Sunday.