Dickinson College Humanities Program in Norwich

My second shift at Bishopbridge on Friday, the fifth of February, was a bit more hands on than the first.  In this shift, I was meant to shadow a senior staff member named Mark.  I got a very accurate look into what working at the hostel is like, and how fantastic the staff has to be at multitasking.  Because two members were evicted from the shelter (one for violence towards other residents, and I never found out the reason for the other), two beds were vacant.  Since space at Bishopbridge is a bit limited and much sought after, two new people were already lined up and in the process of settling in.

The procedures and protocol surrounding new residents were very interesting to observe.  I sat in on an interview for one new person as Mark asked him a variety of questions about his background, including his past accommodations, reasons for leaving, past work, mental health history, drug/alcohol history, and many others.  This man presented himself in a very positive way.  Thus, curious, I asked if people are normally honest in these interviews or whether they present themselves well to obtain a bed and then gradually share their addictions or other issues.  I was told that generally, people are truthful although they have had people who lied and created major problems in the end.

Many of the questions involved the man’s financial history.  He said that yes, he was good at handling his finances and yes, he was able to budget his paychecks.  I was told that this is a somewhat normal response, so I wondered how people became homeless if they were indeed so good at handling money.  Supposedly, some of the people who end up at Bishopbridge are evicted for reasons not pertaining to finances: not keeping a home clean, excess of noise, breaking up with a significant other, losing a job, etc.  This rid me of another stereotype I once held, that all homeless people had no money in part because they didn’t know how to handle finances.

That said, if the problem is finances, the City Council gives the homeless a stipend each month in the area of two hundred and sixty pounds.  The rent at Bishopbridge is a bit more than that, so most people end up paying approximately twenty five pounds out of pocket each week to stay (and in the Residential side, twenty of this is given back for groceries).  However, some people don’t receive as much aid from the Council or have some leftover funds to work with, so residents may pay the rent in full or may only pay a few pounds per week.  Finances are handled on a case by case basis.  At times, though, the team that goes out into the streets of Norwich finds rough sleepers who are fleeing from another country or are illegally staying in England.  When this is the case, Bishopbridge really can’t do anything to help these people because they are unable to receive any benefits from the government and, therefore, can’t pay any rent.  At best, they can offer a cup of coffee or tea and keep checking on them to make sure they’re doing alright.

After the interview, I saw the room of one of the evicted men in the process of being cleaned.  To put it lightly, it was gross.  The floor was covered in all kinds of debris and there was sticky tack all over the walls.  Because of the smoke detectors, obviously residents can’t use candles..this resident got creative and left the candle on top of the heater, so the heater was completely filled with wax.  There were needles in the refrigerator, and the bathroom was a mess.  I helped carry bags of trash down, but I definitely would not want to be the one with the responsibility of cleaning the rooms after the fact.  We also moved some of his belongings into storage, because Bishopbrige saves a person’s items for three weeks after they leave until they can find new accommodations.

At this shift, I learned a lot about the course of moving into the shelter and how a person’s mental/physical health is assessed.  I also became aware of how bad the living conditions can get when a person isn’t used to caring for himself or herself.  I left feeling a bit dissatisfied with the way the finances work, although granted, I still don’t know enough about it to make much of a judgment.

Hours logged: 4

Total hours: 9