Homelessness Women's shelter stops referrals as waiting list gets too long

BRISTOL'S only designated night shelter for homeless women has closed its referrals after being full up and with a waiting list almost twice as long as the number of beds they have.

- Tristan CORK [e-mail]

Bosses at Spring of Hope, on Stapleton Road in Easton, said they can no longer even accept referrals from agencies like the council, because the waiting list is too long.

The charity inHope, which runs the Spring of Hope hostel, announced on Wednesday afternoon that referrals have been 'temporarily closed until further notice.

A spokesperson said: "The shelter has been full for weeks and the waiting list already has 13 women on it."

The Spring of Hope charity has been operating in Bristol for 35 years and began in small premises in St Pauls, it now works in 14 places in central, east and south Bristol, with a staff of 40 and hundreds of volunteers.