Hopefulness at Our Homeless Hostel

With a new CEO and a growing team, our plans for 2026 are big! There is no shortage of ideas we have in the works to ensure that our service is the best that it can be.

Expanding services

There is so much that we want to achieve this year. The clientelle who use our services have a diverse mixture of backgrounds. We look to be able to meet the needs of all those who come through our doors. No two journeys into homelessness are the same, and we want our services to reflect that reality. Our ambition is to meet people where they are. Whether someone is facing substance misuse, trauma, learning needs, poor mental health, the asylum system, experiences of sex work, or long-term exclusion, we want YMCA Wirral to be a place of safety, understanding, and genuine opportunity. A refuge in the fullest sense of the word.

One of our key hopes is to bring specialised psychotherapy services into YMCA Wirral. Too often, homelessness and poor mental health reinforce one another in a damaging cycle. By introducing professional mental health support on site, we aim to address the root causes of instability and help residents move towards long-term wellbeing and independence.

We are also in the process of bringing an Activities Coordinator on board. This role will enable us to offer daily, meaningful activities that provide structure, creativity, and positive distraction from addiction and/or isolation.

We are brainstorming ways to support the young people within the community.

We also hope to transform several spaces within the hostel. Creating an art and music room, for example, would offer residents a calm, productive environment to express themselves and learn new skills.

What do our clients hope for?

At the end of 2025, we conducted an internal survey to better understand what our residents hope for in their own futures. Many told us that their greatest aspiration is to have a home of their own one day. Others spoke about wanting to reconnect with family, rebuild relationships, or regain a sense of normality and belonging.

These hopes are simple, deeply human, and entirely achievable with the right support. Our work this year is guided by those aspirations — supporting people not just to survive, but to believe in a future they can shape themselves.