A HOMELESS charity hopes to catch those in need earlier in the 'homeless cycle' after launching its new advice and support centre.

Countess Howe, the Deputy Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire, cut the ribbon to open The Ground Floor in Castle Street, High Wycombe – the new base for the Wycombe Homeless Connection.

People in need will be able to drop in every weekday morning for housing advice, to use the internet and seek help in gaining employment. The charity will lay on motivational sessions in the afternoons.

Sheena Dykes, chair of trustees, said at Monday's launch: “It’s so exciting, it just makes our work so much more efficient, and open and available to more people.

“Our real desire was to get people earlier on in the homeless cycle, if we can catch them when they are really in need of help and prevent homelessness as much as we can, that’s our biggest aim.

“It was a community effort to get this place open and the support of All Saint’s Parish Church is superb, they have been behind us all the way.

“The Winter Night Shelter opens on January 2, that’s a project within our year-round work, and this new centre fills in the gap.”

The connection was founded in 2007 as a community project by the town’s churches but it has steadily grown over the past six years.

Support workers advise about 300 people in housing crisis every year and volunteers catered for 78 individuals at its drop-in sessions in October alone.

Charity bosses expect to provide more than 900 bed-nights between January and March when the Winter Night Shelter is open.

Its £150,000 annual running costs are primarily funded by donations.

The connection was handed the Community Group of the Year gong at the Wycombe Partner’s Community Champions Awards earlier this year.

Countess Howe praised the work of the charity and the groups that donated time and money to get the new HQ off the ground before Rev Hugh Ellis blessed The Ground Floor building.

Wycombe District Council’s Cabinet member for Community Cllr John Gibbs said: “It’s a great initiative and we want to be part of the future.

“It gives people a place to come and it gives them belief, it’s all about supporting and motivating people. The charity’s volunteers, the trustees – it’s them that have made this happen, it’s wonderful.”

For more information or to make a donation to the connection, visit www.wyhoc.org.uk or follow @WycombeHomeless on Twitter.