Seaview Project receives prestigious GSK Impact Award

Huge and hearty congratulations to the team at Seaview Project for winning – and recently being presented with – the prestigious GSK Impact Award ‘for improving the quality of life for homeless and insecurely housed people in Hastings and St Leonards’. HOT’s Zelly Restorick writes.

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“If it wasn’t for Seaview, I don’t like to think where I’d be now.”

Jodie, who came to Seaview for help and now works as a peer mentor to others

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The Seaview Project is the only organisation around in the local and wider area providing help and support to those who live on the margins of society. At a time of rapidly increasing homelessness, this seems utterly incredible. The project also has been subjected to the same funding cuts as many other local charitable organisations, so you can imagine the pressure and strain the services are under.

CEO, Annie Whelan, who devotes many more hours to the project than those for which she is paid, fundraises tirelessly and with wholehearted determination to keep the project not only alive and functioning, but evolving, constantly responding to the needs of the people Seaview supports and adapting to changing circumstances and the growing number of people in need of help.

The GSK IMPACT Awards provide funding and training and development for charities doing excellent work to improve people’s health.

“Seaview Project works in a deprived area in England, with high rates of rough sleeping,” stated the GSK IMPACT Awards judging panel. “Almost half the people it supports have a diagnosed mental health problem and many also have issues with addictions. Its open access wellbeing centre focuses on both homelessness and mental health, whilst offering food, warmth, washing facilities and access to a range of other services.

“This charity does hugely valuable work in supporting its local community. We were impressed by how it has a big reach despite being relatively small. It shows an organisation making the best use of its resources and making a real difference to people’s lives.”

Annie Whelan would be the first to emphasise that she works with an excellent team, who are dedicated to the people they support and are reliable, hardworking, trustworthy and totally committed to making a difference to people’s lives, one person at a time.

Annie, who collected the GSK Impact Award along with her colleague, Sue Burgess, was clearly emotional when she gave her speech of acceptance and gratitude, as receiving the award means a great deal to such a relatively small organisation: “For 33 years, The Seaview Project has been trying to reach and represent the people living on the edges of society. We are also a charity that’s on the edge of the south coast. We represent people on the edge and we’re on the edge.

“It’s very hard to speak after watching the film, but over the last year, we have worked with over fourteen hundred people… 317 of these people we have found and met rough sleeping – that’s a 40% increase on the year before. Sometimes, we are the only human contact that these individuals have for a long period of time. We’re the ones who have the responsibility and privilege of building trust and trying to represent their interests – and trying to wait til they’re ready to link them with life and community.

“It’s getting more difficult out there as a small charity and I just want to really thank GSK and the Kings Fund for recognising and noticing us, for understanding what we’re doing – and for giving us this award, the programme and some momentum and ability to do more. Thank you.”

Congratulations, appreciation and gratitude to everyone at Seaview from HOT and our local community.

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