Hospitality and hope in the heart of Swansea

Swansea City is pleased to announce that Matthew’s House has been selected as one of the club’s chosen charities for season 2018-19.

Based on High Street, near Swansea railway station, Matthew’s House provides a warm and welcoming home in the heart of the city to assist the homeless and most vulnerable in the community.

At the centre of the project is Matt’s Café. Run by volunteers, the café intercepts donated, and perfectly edible food waste from local supermarkets and businesses destined for landfill to turn in to delicious ‘home-cooked’ style meals available to all, particularly those who are homeless or vulnerable.

Equipped with first-class kitchen facilities, the café has a pay as you feel policy which allows people who need food to eat for free, as well as giving people an opportunity to donate what they can to the charity.

The overriding aim is to reduce food waste; feed those with or without funds and to provide opportunities for those who are long-term unemployed.

The cafe with a conscience is currently open on Sunday’s (6.30pm–9pm); Monday’s (10am-3pm) and Tuesday’s (10am-3pm).

Matthew’s House also offers hospitality and hope in other areas apart from the Matt’s Café project, which had already served over 18,000 meals in its short 18-month life.

For example, the Homeless Period is an initiative that collects, creates and distributes ‘Dignity Packs’ to vulnerable women and women. Packs can contain sanitary towels, wet wipes, tissues, underwear, socks, deodorant, mints, gum and lip balm.

Ongoing projects also include a shower and laundry room, lounge and 1-2-1 buddy service and meeting rooms, plus an auditorium for community help groups with a commitment of making the facilities available to those who need them the most.

The Swans will be supporting Matthew’s House throughout the season on specific projects from a financial and profile-raising perspective. And leading from the front will be club legend Leon Britton who has agreed to become the first Matthew’s House ambassador.

We’ll bring you more details about the excellent work at Matthew’s House over the course of the campaign.

In the meantime, you can find out more about the work of Matthew’s House, and how you can help and donate, at http://matthewshouse.org.uk/

“With your help our aim is to provide a ‘home’ in the heart of Swansea for those who are most vulnerable. A building that is known for unconditional hospitality and hope – providing a lifeline for the homeless and others who need it” – Matthew’s House.

A brief history . . .

The idea for Matthew’s House was born in mid-2016 when The Hill Church purchased a previously renovated Grade 2 listed building called St Matthew’s.

The building had a history of serving the poorest and most vulnerable, but due to sad circumstances had been closed for nearly two years.

The purchase was completed using funds donated by the church. This was then followed by months and months of volunteer hours being given to turn the building into Matthew’s House – a house of hospitality and hope in the heart of Swansea.

In early 2017 the first initiative of Matthew’s House was launched, namely Matt’s Cafe.

Over time they were able to establish a core group of volunteers from across the city – all from different backgrounds, beliefs and circumstances.

There is also a small but growing number of Friends of Matthew’s House who are willing to give a small amount per month to the exclusive work of Matthew’s House. This, along with the ongoing support of The Hill Church, has made a real difference to their planning and potential.

The team now exceeds 70 volunteers and by the end of 2017 had served over 8,000 meals.

Other initiatives are in progress and will be starting soon which include a ‘donate with dignity’ token scheme, showers and laundry facilities.