The Night Shelter opened its doors to the first guests in November 1995, so providing Cambridge's first year-round night shelter in time for Christmas!
Jimmy's is named in memory of Jim Dilley, who spent much of his life sleeping rough in the region, or spending winter nights in one of Cambridge's temporary shelters. In the last few years of his life, Jim slept under the M11 motorway bridge at junction 13: our logo is a representation of that bridge.
In the winter of 1993, Jim was told he had lung cancer. Sadly he died in Papworth hospital in June 1994, and subsequently his ashes were scattered at his old 'home' - junction 13 of the M11.
His moving story so inspired a small group of people that they were determined to establish a permanent night shelter in Cambridge.
Plans for the Night Shelter were drawn up in early 1995 and in May of that year, the Council gave permission for the Shelter to be established in the basement of the Zion Baptist Church on East Road.
Crucial to setting up the Shelter were funding and donations. Jimmy's was lucky to receive funding from CRISIS, the Opportunities for Volunteering scheme, plus countless donations from many other organisations and individuals. These included kitchen equipment from BT in Ipswich, furniture from the Eaden Lilley department store, a food mountain from the OLEM church.
Even at this stage, Jimmy's was reliant on - and extremely grateful to - an army of volunteers, who worked tirelessly to get the Shelter up and running. These volunteers came from all over: the wider church community, Cambridge's two universities, individuals who had heard or read about Jimmy's in the media, retired people, busy business people, our neighbours in Petersfield - the list really is endless! An especially important group was that drawn from the homeless who helped with decorating, collecting donations, cleaning, cooking, odd-jobbing - already we knew our guests would help make Jimmy's a very special and unique night shelter.
Our services then, although essential, were rather basic: bed, breakfast and an evening meal.
Today, having provided shelter for 3000 people since opening, our services and life at Jimmy's has moved on enormously - each new service being inspired by the needs of our guests. We now have laundry facilities, a dedicated clothing store, a quiet reading room, pool table, sports afternoons, annual seaside trips, free internet access, guest advocacy, chiropody, move-on houses and visiting agencies such as street outreach team, drug & alcohol services, psychiatrist and St.John Ambulance footcare team.
Services like Jimmy's Night Shelter will always be needed. We aim to ensure that whatever the future holds, we will continue to offer love, support and a place of safety and security for all our guests - in memory of Jim Dilley and the many others like him.
