Alcohol and drug addiction charity seeks £350k in bid to fund new base
A charity which helps vulnerable people and those recovering from alcohol and drug addictions in Dudley is bidding for more than £350,000 to fund a new base and increase its range of support services.
Summit House Support, which has been running for more than 20 years, is currently based in Martin Hill Street.
Bosses have now bought bigger premises within the St Thomas's ward - one of Dudley's most deprived areas to enable them to expand.
The charity provides programmes and support for people recovering from drug and alcohol misuse.
It also offers support, advice and information for people living with HIV/AIDS as well as the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities.
The charity has been working with Dudley Council on its application for £351,000 from Public Health England.
Some of the money will be used to set up a catering kitchen for training and a cafe.
While there would also be work units and rooms where support groups could be run.
Council chief executive John Polychronakis said it would enable the charity to have a bigger presence in St Thomas's.
"Summit House Support have recently purchased a property in the St Thomas's Ward which is bigger than existing building and will enable the delivery of a wide range of high quality services.
"The space will be utilised to include office space, meeting and conference space, catering kitchen for customer training and recovery cafe.
"Additional land will be used to create sustainable workspaces for setting social enterprise initiatives and workshops.
"The additional space will allow concurrent groups to run for clients, carer and families and one to one support," he added.
Originally known as Dudley HIV/AIDS Support, it was for many years based in Stourbridge. It supports about 650 people a year, and demand is increasing.
A support service is available for anyone living with HIV and their friends, partners, lovers, carers and families.
The charity also has a base in West Bromwich where it helps 200 people in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction.
Describing the charity's work , chief executive Suzanne Callen said: "We continue to be committed to supporting diverse and marginalised communities to challenge stigma and have worked hard with our partners across the statutory, voluntary and community sector to deliver excellent and holistic support for our customers."
