An update on our plans for reopening

A few weeks ago we announced that Big Breakfast Plus would reopen to guests in December 2021 at our new venue The Pilgrim Centre in Swindon. Our timetable for reopening has recently changed and we wanted to share a further update so everyone is aware of our plans.

Whilst we initially anticipated resuming our service in December, our service will instead reopen in mid-January 2022 on Thursday, Friday and Saturday between 7.30-9.00am at the Pilgrim Centre café. We appreciate that this may be disappointing for guests and our team is doing everything possible to make sure we have the operational capacity to reopen in a safe and responsible way.

One of our biggest barriers to reopening has been recruiting volunteers, a challenge shared by many voluntary organisations since Covid-19. Volunteering has changed locally and nationally since the pandemic with many volunteers involved in community support initiatives and the NHS vaccine rollout. In addition, some individuals who previously volunteered may be unable to resume volunteering for example because they are clinically vulnerable, experiencing personal or financial hardship or have additional responsibilities at home or work.

We are urgently looking for 20 people to come forward and support Big Breakfast Plus as a volunteer. Duties include welcoming our guests, helping with food service and cleaning with supervision from our new Breakfast Shift lead. We are committed to supporting volunteers and operating in a Covid-safe way by offering full training, a volunteer induction and personal protective equipment (PPE) for all volunteers.

Please get in touch with us by email if you would like to volunteer: hello@bigbreakfastplus.org.uk or complete our online Volunteer Enquiry Form. If you are unable to volunteer yourself, we would be grateful if you would mention to your family members, friends, colleagues and others that Big Breakfast Plus is looking for volunteers.

The pandemic has represented a real challenge for small charities like Big Breakfast Plus, but we have already achieved so much. Since our service closed to guests in March 2020, we have secured a new venue for breakfast, recruited new staff and Trustees and met with local organisations to identify how we can work together to support homeless people in Swindon.

As we make preparations to resume our service in early 2022, we are now beginning to incur costs for the charity including salaries and equipment for our venue. If you can afford to do so, we would be grateful for small donations through our LocalGiving page or as part of a festive fundraiser at your school, college or workplace.

We will keep you up to date with our progress and look forward to sharing some photos inside our new venue very soon.

Watch this space.
Big Breakfast Plus HQ