Parish Collection for Gatehouse and Oxford Night Shelter

Rough Sleeping in Oxford
Every year in every town there is a ‘street count’ of rough sleepers on the same night all over the UK. These are the figures for Oxford:
2012: 12   2013: 19    2014:26    2015: 39    2016: 33     2017: 61
2018:  Current estimate of rough sleepers on a typical night: 89
(Source of figures: Oxford City Council, Evidence Base for Housing and Homelessness Strategy 2018-21)
There are many reasons for homelessness: exclusion by parents, relatives, friends; loss of rented accommodation; relationship breakdown; rent/mortgage arrears; and families, too, find themselves homeless and in B&B.  People die on the street when their health and resistance has deteriorated. Responding to the needs of these people is to respond to the need of Jesus, born into ‘alternative accommodation’ to show the love of God for everyone.    Click the following link for Oxford City Website for 12 Things You can do to Support the homeless.

GATEHOUSE
The Parish supports the Gatehouse Charity which gives warm clothing to homeless people in Oxford over the winter; the list below shows things they particularly need. You can leave your gifts in the box at the back of church. Even a small thing can help someone with nowhere to go.  Some gifts can be used by Oxford Winter Night Shelter. 
Things we ALWAYS need:
Duvets (synthetic), blankets (wool/acrylic – no cotton please)
Sleeping bags (new and used)
Camping mats to protect sleeping bags from wet ground
Tents (one person/two person);  Groundsheets for camping
Rucksacks and holdalls
Waterproof trousers and jackets
Men’s pants and boxer shorts;  Socks
Razors;  Shaving cream + shaving gel;   Deodorants
Shampoo + shower gel
Gloves – fleece/sturdy gloves. (No ‘magic’ gloves please)
Candles
Men’s waterproof trainers + boots
Women’s outdoor/practical shoes + boots sizes 7 -8.
Men’s outdoor practical coats and jackets
Men’s winter/outdoor trousers especially size 32” and 34”; and sizes 48” and 50”

Please note: We do not need any WOMEN’S clothing (other than large sized shoes/boots) at present.
Please DO NOT DONATE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING; we cannot use or we have enough of these items: 
Pillows;   Hats;  Men's t-shirts and polo tops
Sanitary towels and tampons
Sheets, pillow and duvet cases
Summer clothes + shorts (men’s or womens)
Baby + children’s clothes;   Nappies
Formal men’s clothing – suits, trousers, jackets
Men’s shirts;   Men’s summer trousers
Sun tan lotion; used lipsticks + used lip balm.