The chairman of a Glasgow homeless charity predicts there will be “body bags” on the streets if the soup kitchen they run can’t be provided with a suitable warm building to move the kitchen indoors this winter.
Colin McInnes is the co-founder of Homeless Project Scotland, which runs the soup kitchen seven nights per week under the Hielanman’s Umbrella at Glasgow Central Station, believed to be Scotland’s busiest.
Yesterday morning, he joined fellow charity staff, volunteers, supporters and members of the homeless community who use their kitchen to launch a protest outside Glasgow City Chambers to call on Glasgow City Council to provide them with a premises in the city.
He told The Herald that the charity had already earmarked the Hamish Allan Centre, which used to operate as an out of hours emergency homelessness service, as the perfect place to house the soup kitchen.
He said: “We want to send a message to Glasgow City Council that it’s now time to give us a building, an appropriate building and one that is suitable for our homeless people. The Hamish Allan Centre is the perfect place to open up as soon as possible.
The centre is a one-stop shop for everything because it’s been the centre of homelessness for many decades. It’s time to open the doors again.”
He also expressed his fears that members of the homeless community who frequent their soup kitchen could perish if a suitable building isn’t found before winter bites.
It comes after Mr McInnes told The Herald last month that the charity’s resources are becoming increasingly stretched amid a huge rise in the number of service users, which has seen the charity go from serving between 2,000 to 2,500 meals a week to 3,500 to 4,500 meals.
He added: “If there’s no building then there’s going to be bodybags on the streets as people are going to freeze to death. That’s what we are predicting.”
The charity has taken to social media repeatedly to call on Glasgow City Council to provide them with a suitable building, and launched a petition on the issue, which has been signed by more than 400 people in a little over 24 hours.
In response, Glasgow City Council said they had offered two properties to Homeless Project Scotland, both of which the charity declined.
A spokesman for the council said: “We are trying to find Homeless Project Scotland suitable premises, but we have limited options for them.
“Two properties were offered as possibilities, but both were declined. Property at Cadogan Square remains available on a temporary basis for a £1 rent if they want to keep looking for something permanent in the meantime. We have asked HPS to clarify the size, location, facilities and tenure of the building they are looking for.
“Our community asset transfer scheme, People Make Glasgow Communities, could also help them to identify a venue they are interested in taking on.The former Hamish Allan Centre has been raised as a possibility but the building is earmarked for social housing and talks are ongoing with a housing association.
“It is also currently a dangerous building with asbestos, electrical issues and no fire safety system among other problems. It will take significant time and investment to bring up to standard.
“We remain in regular contact with the charity as we go over the options we have for them, but they should also keep reaching out to other property holders in their search for a building. Everyone agrees the Heilanman’s Umbrella is not a suitable place for the support they provide.”
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