Work amongst the homeless people of Preston started in the early 1970s when the church offered support to those members of its youth club who had no home to return to when the club closed its doors for the night.

As in many towns with large psychiatric hospitals on the doorstep, Preston felt the impact of the closure of Whittingham Hospital. Some of the men released from the hospital were not capable of looking after themselves and tended to wander. A soup kitchen was established to help meet their needs and eventually the church council agreed that people could sleep in the downstairs church hall.

The church and private donations as well as a vast group of volunteers covered all expenses both for redevelopment and day to day running. With the eventual exception of Housing Benefit Fox Street Community survived off this generosity until 2003.

Under the leadership of Harry Hobbs and the management of Steve McGougan the premises were continually updated and the service provision continued on an extremely meagre income.

Both Hobbs and McGougan along with the treasurer Ted Lowes eased the financial burden with a successful application to Supporting People (Government funding). With part of the staff salaries paid for by Supporting People, 100% of public donations could go straight to supporting the vulnerable people.

It wasn’t long until the formal creation of Fox Street Community in November 1989 (originally the Emmaus Community - this changed to avoid confusion with the international Emmaus Community, when in 1996 they announced plans to open in Preston). The objective was to organise the on-going church support for rough sleepers.

The changes that have taken place in 2008 are not a negative comment on the previous years, but are a result of the marvellous dedication and perseverance of many people who worked extremely hard on a shoestring budget. The vision in 1989 to provide church based support for homeless people is still at the heart of our vision today.

It is our intention to build on our new foundations by setting up a Community Interest Group, whereby we will start our own enterprise that offers our residents invaluable skills and will develop our centre and bring in finances, required for our day to day living.

Such investment will prove worth while for the city of Preston in the long term. As we witness the breakdown of community life and social networks, as well as the growth of a culture built on various dependencies, we can see our work will be much needed for many years.

The immediate future has been secured and looks promising.

I was hungry and you formed a discussion group to discuss my hunger.

I was imprisoned and you quietly crept off to your chapel and prayed for my release.

I was naked and you debated the morality of my appearance.

I was sick and you knelt and thanked God for your health.

I was homeless and you preached to me of the spiritual shelter of the love of God.

I was lonely and you left me alone to pray for me.

You seem so holy, so close to God

But I am still very hungry and lonely and cold.

Don’t look for the flaws, as you go through life.

And even if you find them

It is wise and kind to be somewhat blind

and look for the virtues behind them.