The Oliver Liddar Foundation awards £12,000 to The Bridge

Helping to break the cycle of homelessness in Leicester

The Oliver Liddar Foundation recently awarded a £12,000 donation to The Bridge Homelessness to Hope, via the William Brake Foundation. The money will support the employment of a new, part-time case worker at this Leicester-based homeless charity.

From its day centre on Melton Street in Leicester, The Bridge Homelessness to Hope offers a range of specialist services to people experiencing homelessness in the city, including mental health and wellbeing support.

Coping with increased demand for services

Footfall at The Bridge Homelessness to Hope has increased by 8% to 14,756 for the first nine months of the year, compared to the same period in 2024. This follows a 51% increase in 2024 compared to 2023.

While the charity has been able to continue running its services despite the increases in footfall, this has had a negative effect financially as additional staff have been employed to cope with the increased demand, together with the increased cost of the weekly food bill.

How a new case worker will help

The new case worker will support those people who have been recently housed in supported accommodation, leased by The Bridge Homelessness to Hope at locations across the city. Thirteen people are housed at present.

The new case worker will be the primary point of assistance for the residents of this supported accommodation, building trusting relationships through regular, proactive engagement including support meetings, facilitating house meetings, and conducting property inspections to ensure a safe and positive living environment.

“We are honoured to support this important cause through the Oliver Liddar and William Brake Foundations. The Bridge Homelessness to Hope delivers crucial front-line assistance to individuals experiencing difficult situations. Everyone deserves compassion, encouragement and hope. We are proud to help."

Esther Liddar from the Oliver Liddar Foundation

Oliver Liddar

“On behalf of everyone at The Bridge Homelessness to Hope, we offer a massive thank you for the wonderful donation of £12,000 that we received from the Oliver Liddar Foundation. We understand that Oliver himself gave a generous donation to a local homeless charity when he was in Canada, so we hope to use this new donation from the Foundation to continue to extend his legacy.

There's a misconception that you only have to provide a bed space to stop someone being homeless. However, that is just the start of the journey and unfortunately, once someone has become homeless, they are likely to suffer homelessness on average 4.2 times.  

The generosity of the Oliver Liddar Foundation means that we can maximise the chances of the people with whom we're working to retain their accommodation and hopefully, for them at least, break the cycle of homelessness.”

David Fawcett, CEO of The Bridge Homelessness to Hope.

Remembering Olly

The Oliver Liddar Foundation was established to honour the memory of Olly, whose life touched so many people in meaningful ways. Olly's spirit of kindness, community involvement, and positive impact continues to inspire us all.

Through this foundation, we aim to continue Olly's legacy by supporting causes that were close to his heart, fostering community connections, and creating opportunities for others to make a positive difference in the world.

Read more about The Oliver Liddar Foundation. https://www.oliverliddar.com/