A CHARITY has helped more than 600 people turn their lives around and take control in the past four years.

Gary Staniforth, who founded Hidden Voices, says its support is needed as much as ever in the city.

Big Lottery funding amounting to £220,000 over three years means the charity, with a base at Manningham’s Carlisle Business Centre, can run life coaching and addiction recovery programmes as part of a transformation initiative.

“With one in five adults experiencing some form of anxiety or depression our programmes provide interventions that build on individuals’ existing skills and life experiences to improve their overall well-being,” said Mr Staniforth.

“In the past four years we have supported over 600 people across Bradford. The Big Lottery now fund our unique life coaching and addiction recovery programmes, running at venues across Bradford.”

One of the charity’s success stories is Donna Buxton who was lonely, long-term unemployed and not confident enough to leave her own house in Bradford until she got help from Hidden Voices.

It took a few attempts at finding her voice and being able to connect with others on the course and at the group but she made it in the end, encouraged by her Hidden Voices life coach Nina Farquharson, said Mr Staniforth.

By Christmas her confidence had grown so much she was able to stand up in front of 50 people and the Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Abid Hussain, to tell her story at a special reception marking the work of Hidden Voices and its clients’ achievements. “It was a real tear-jerker,” said Mr Staniforth.

Now she has a job working with clothing and homeware retailer Next.

“Donna’s story is unique to her, but is typical of the transformation we see in our work with people,” said Mr Staniforth, who was homeless himself in 2008 before campaigning for men caught up in the cycle of homelessness helped him find his own voice.

He got involved in a service user group and started running creative writing workshops for others like him which led on to peer mentoring schemes and setting up The Hidden Homeless Ltd in 2011, which is now a registered charity and works with 50 partners.

He said the project’s success promoting positive change had been helped by the lived experiences of its frontline team who had been able to use their own life experiences to develop the courses they ran and connect with the people who needed their help.

“The trust we gain with our clients is amazing and key to the successes, like Donna’s, that we see in our work.”

Anyone wanting to find out more about Hidden Voices can go to hiddenhomeless.co.uk or call its office on 01274 211011 / 07763 969548. Alternatively, e-mail admin@hiddenhomeless.co.uk.