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Porchlight is a Kent based charity that works to change people’s lives for the better. We help the most vulnerable and isolated people in our communities to access housing and related support services. We work with individuals, organisations and government to prevent the breakdown of our communities and reduce poverty. We are a forward thinking and innovative charity, passionate about helping people and communities.
Porchlight works to change people’s lives for the better. By helping the most vulnerable and isolated people in our communities to access housing and related support services, we help change lives.
Our History
We changed our name to Porchlight in June 2008. We were first registered as Canterbury Cyrenians in 1974 then as we expanded to areas outside of Canterbury we changed our name to East Kent Cyrenians in 2005. The decision was then made to re-brand completely to reflect the changes within the charity and the homelessness sector.
Canterbury Cyrenians was originally established by an ex-homeless man, Tom Gifford, and was inspired by the Simon Community project model founded in 1970. The Cyrenian movement encouraged local communities to help the homeless and there are many Cyrenian organisations still in existence today, with all maintaining their independence of each other.
Making the decision to change our name and break from the Cyrenian tradition, we remained true to our roots and have ensured that the new name and identity is relevant to our service users. Porchlight was the name that connected with people and it was the reaction to the logo of one service user in particular, who had problems reading, that cemented the decision.
Our Vision
We strive for a society where the most excluded are included and where communities work together; a society where homelessness and poverty is a thing of the past and where vulnerable people are empowered to take control of their lives.
Our Mission
Porchlight works to change people’s lives for the better. By helping the most vulnerable and isolated people in our communities to access housing and related support services, we help change lives. We work with individuals, organisations and government to prevent the breakdown of our communities and reduce poverty. Through our success we challenge the negative attitudes and beliefs surrounding exclusion. By changing lives we can change attitudes; and through a change in attitudes, we can change more lives.
Service User Charter
The Service User Charter was designed by service users and staff in June 2008. The charter details what service users should expect from us and how they should feel about the services they are accessing. View the charter.
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