Jacob's Well Care Centre was founded in 1992 by Stuart & Angela Pottinger, the Charity was originally set up to provide free furniture to those in need in Gosport, also to provide aid for the people in the Salaj district of Romania. In the beginning members of Jacob's Well church and local volunteers helped to collect clothing, bedding and furniture surplus to requirements and then distributed them to those in need. During this time lorry loads of aid were sent out to Romania on a regular basis.

Up until 1999 the organization was run from a warehouse which was donated free of charge in the middle of Rowner Gosport, After a major looting incident where all the toys and clothes were stolen, the care centre moved to premises to Gordon Road in Gosport, our first charity shop.where we stayed for ten years enjoying fantastic support from the public. When the care centre relocated the premises were no longer donated so we had to make a small charge for the furniture so we could cover costs.

As the community demand for our project was expanding very quickly, the furniture project side of the care centre out grew the premises at Gordon Road, so we then found a larger more suitable premises to house the furniture and all other projects associated with it. In Park Street, Gosport Hampshire.We currently have three large warehouses in Park Street. Gosport.

CURRENT PROFILE (ENGLAND)

Jacob's Well Care Centre occupies a unique position in the community, there is at present no other project that concentrates its efforts in Gosport, Fareham, Portsmouth, West Sussex and surrounding areas and offers a service specifically designed and focused on providing for low income households.

The Homeless act. This has required local authorities to produce homelessness strategies that consider a home to be more than just a roof and to consider issues such as social exclusion and support needs, Our project helps them by offering a to those who are being re-housed after homelessness, enabling them to create a home that is furnished and comfortable.

At present the charity receives referrals from many local agencies, especially from the local authority, housing and community services departments, the remainder come from a wide range of voluntary and statutory bodies.We are completly self funding and not supprted by any authority or government department so we need your support.Community Care Plan. The objective of this is to help people remain in their homes by providing them with decent furniture at low cost, also to help soon to be families with baby equipment in some cases free of charge. The national service frameworks have mental health promotion as a priority area, the recommendations includestrengthening individuals through interventions designed to promote self-esteem, life and coping skills, which is very much part of our project with our supported staff and volunteers. Also recommends increasing social support, social inclusion and participation as well as developing initiatives to reduce inequalities and promote access to education, employment and support for those who are vulnerable. This scheme encourages participation in volunteering, thus leading to greater employability with new skills, confidence and support.

We currently collect donated items of furniture,white goods, carpet, paint, household items, toys, baby equipment, clothes, bedding, these items then come back to our main warehouse at which the furniture is then sold via referrals or the general public in need of low cost furniture. The carpets are also sold in a similar way.The white goods are checked,tested,refurbished and cleaned for resale at low cost. The paint is collected and sorted at several re-cycling plants and then delivered to us via a project called the re-paint project, in conjunction with a nationwide intiative, details of this project are on the products page, we also collect paint from B&Q and HOMEBASE.  The household items, clothes, toys and bedding are sorted into things that are suitable to be sold at our charity shop the rest is then packed for aid to go to our distribution centre in Romania. Our aim is to REUSE most items, We rag only a minimal amount.

We also give emergency bedding packs & cutlery packs totally free of charge to those in desperate need via referrals.

Our local strategy aims to encourage more energy efficient lifestyles, by providing facilities for people to both donate and receive furniture, we close the loop hole on a refuse re-use service, offering the facility to re-use and a ''market'' for the goods.

Our Contact Details
Call us on 0808 145 0855 to arrange a collection or to enquire about our storage and removal services. You can also follow us on Twitter @jacobswelluk or send us an e-mail  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Don't forget to visit our new EBAY SHOP!