A CHARITY that helps homeless people to help themselves is a step nearer to setting up a base in York.

The Emmaus movement, which is backed by former Beirut hostage Terry Waite, establishes communities for the homeless that offer not just a bed and food, but a whole way of life.

Now, a York community is one stage nearer reality following a successful public meeting in the city. The organisation has abandoned plans for a Scarborough community through lack of public interest.

Emmaus communities support themselves through organised trading, such as the collection and resale of household goods and bric-a-brac, and the refurbishment and repair of furniture, bicycles and electrical goods.

A York community would be the seventh in the UK, after Coventry, Belfast, Brighton, Dover and Greenwich, London. The first was set up in Cambridge in 1992.

Iain Mackechnie-Jarvis, director of Emmaus UK, said: "Emmaus can offer a positive way forward for people to come out of homelessness. When they are in the Emmaus community, they work to make it self-supporting and, at the same time, they get on-the-job training.

"They find self-respect because they are doing it for themselves."

He said York could be compared to Cambridge, where the homeless problem had grown on the back of tourism. "When you have a high degree of visitors, it is quite attractive to people wanting to beg and busk," he said.

York's homelessness problem is getting worse, according to charity workers in the city.

David Cunington, chairman of York Carecent, said about 60 to 70 breakfasts were handed out each day at the St Saviourgate Centre, and another 30 or 40 people received food on evening soup runs. He said: "Based on that, I would say there were about 30 to 50 homeless people living in York, and the problem is getting worse among young people."

Mr Mackechnie-Jarvis said he was hopeful a branch of Emmaus could soon be set up in York, but said the initiative had to come locally.Brd Coady Weekes, of York Carecent, said there was great enthusiasm for setting up a York Emmaus community.

* Anyone who could offer support for an Emmaus project in York should contact the Fairer World shop, at 84 Gillygate, York, YO3 7EQ, telephone 01904 655116, or to write to Brd Coady Weekes at the same address.

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