Forest Churches Emergency Night Shelters

Who we are

In September 2009 the only hostel in the borough which provided a service for rough sleepers closed for a yearlong refurbishment programme, leaving a gap in the provision. Churches in Waltham Forest mobilised to fill that gap, opening for just 3 months. That winter, the coldest on record, saw 130 people using the shelter. In 2011, Forest Churches Emergency Night Shelter Ltd was registered as a charity and a registered company.

In 2020 Covid restrictions meant we had to work very differently. We formed a partnership with a hotel to provide emergency accommodation for our guests and at the start of the pandemic in March 2020 moved our guests from the churches to the hotel.

Since 2022, we have worked in partnership with YMCA SPG in Walthamstow, who provide us with our drop-in centre premises and rooms for those using our emergency night shelter.

Our culture and values

(FCENS ‘fa-ss-enz’) is an independent charity serving single adults experiencing homelessness in Waltham Forest, based at the YMCA in Walthamstow.  We serve 150 – 200 people every year, through a drop-in homeless advice service, running all year, and a night shelter for the winter months of November – March.

Lived experience is at the centre of all we do. We employ peer coaches with lived experience of homelessness. Our Lived Experience Board advises Trustees, giving insight from their position of lived expertise.

We are trauma informed. We work to empower people to regain control, to make their own decisions to support themselves towards lasting change. We encourage trusted relationships between guests, staff and volunteers. Our services are grounded in the understanding that trauma can impact an individual’s behaviours through changes to neurological, biological, psychological and social development. We co-design our service around our guests and their experience.

Homelessness in Waltham Forest

Homelessness can happen to anyone at any time, often occurring just one life-changing event, including relationship breakdown, illness, eviction, loss of work, a traumatic event such as a fire, or loss of home for any reason. People who are homeless include those who are staying in temporary accommodation, sleeping rough or in hostels or other homeless accommodation, and those who are sleeping on the sofa with friends or family, or moving from one place to another. 

The charity Shelter reported that at least 354,000 people were homeless in England in December 2024 – a rise of 14% in a year. That’s one in every 160 people. Residents in Waltham Forest are more likely to be homeless than the London average with 9 in 1000 residents homeless in 2024, the 4th highest in Outer London. 2% of local private rental listings are affordable to residents on Housing Benefit. In 2025, the council had 1774 homelessness assessments. 91 people were registered rough sleeping (CHAIN).

Rising demand means high numbers presenting for support at libraries and drop-ins. In 2025, 416 people presented to Waltham Forest’s Community Drop-Ins, requiring support due to homelessness.

Waltham Forest is among the most diverse boroughs in the country. 39% of residents were born outside the UK. National estimates of destitution show that migrants are 35% more likely to be at risk of destitution than the wider population.