Non-profit organization Street nurses start crowdfunding for housing modules for homeless patients | Brussels
BrusselsWith the crowdfunding vzw Straatverplegers wants to collect support for extra housing modules in Brussels. That project aims to provide the vulnerable people in the capital. In Forest there are currently 6 of these residential modules in use.
The non-profit organization focuses mainly on the most vulnerable people in Brussels. “We mainly help the homeless who are most at risk of death,” explains Koen Van den Broeck, the communication manager of the non-profit organization Straatverplegers. “We set criteria for this. But it has been determined that people who have been living on the street for years, and who have an addiction problem or other health problems.”
“We want to improve this with our non-profit organisation,” Van den Broeck continues. “We try to pay back to society in the long term. First we look for a place to stay for them. Then follows the integration process. We go in search of a new life purpose with them and also try to put people back in a social environment. Guidance to the right institutions, such as health services, is also important.”
Crowdfunding
But finding a solution is not easy. “The number of available homes and land is not high, but the demand is,” says Van Den Broeck. “And long before new places are added. Often it is not social housing that is being built.” To increase the reception capacity for the homeless, the non-profit organization Street Nurses developed residential modules. “These modules are comfortable and durable. They are 26 square meters in size, which is within the housing standards in the Brussels Region. they are movable and in addition it does not take long to install a residential module. They are targeted as transitional homes, which gives us and the patients more time to settle into permanent homes.”
In Vorst, six of those modules have been used since May. “But we’d love to see more. About 750 people live on the streets in Brussels. It is important to provide extra housing for people who fall within our criteria. If we can install six modules in all Brussels municipalities, we can get 120 people off the streets.” modules will also be installed in Neder-Over-Heembeek, in collaboration with the regular OCMW. Negotiations are still ongoing in Jette.
To finance the project, the non-profit organization is launching a crowdfunding campaign. In total, men hope to collect 45,000 euros, the cost of a housing module. More than 14,000 euros has already been collected. Monday 18 July at 20 pm the non-profit organization will give street nurses a digital info session about the project.
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