The Sinking of the Ark

Over the cacophony created by many people talking in a large uncarpeted room, Bruce Wiseman hands over a bacon roll with a bit of friendly banter. Up to the day I meet him, he had been volunteering at the Ark Café, working from 7am to 12pm, cooking food. Handsome and clean-shaven, neatly dressed and eloquent, he is not your stereotypical notion of a homeless person.

Wiseman is one of the 110 people who depended on the facilities provided by the Ark Trust canteen, which operated to support the homeless and those threatened by homelessness. But these desperately needed services are no longer available after Edinburgh Council withdrew the funding it granted to the Trust at the end of June.

"Before I started volunteering here, I was just a service user. I came in here to get out, have a coffee and a chat. Since I started here, I've got my confidence and self-worth back, I've got my get-up-and-go back." Wiseman then confides: "When this place goes I don't know what I'm going to do."

For 70 years the Ark Café on New Street provided cheap food, clothes, toiletries, telephone and fax facilities, and housing advice to those on the front lines of homelessness.

All these resources have disappeared since the council withdrew the £167,000 funding the Ark receives per year.

Clayton Jones, one of the staff that ran the canteen, said: "It's not even the fact that they are withdrawing our funding, it's the fact that the notice they gave was so limited.

"They withdrew almost £200,000 on three months notice and expect us to be able to find that sort of money, especially when the elections are on, and it's just after the financial year, so most of the trust funds have already allocated their money for the year."

The council said the decision was made after considering the Ark's past performance. An Edinburgh Council spokesman said: "The council made it clear that the Ark Trust Café service was not delivering a service which is considered a priority."

56,811 Scottish households made homeless applications to their local council in 2005-2006, a 5.3% rise from the previous year. House prices are also on the rise. According to the Scottish Executive, the average house price in Scotland has increased from £69,961 in 2000 to £150,412 in January 2007. This is an increase of 115% in just seven years.

According to the Bank of Scotland's Quarterly Scottish House Price Index, Edinburgh is the most expensive place in Scotland to buy a house, and prices have risen 11% in the first quarter of 2007. Many first-time buyers desperate to climb onto the property ladder are signing up for mortgages six or seven times their salaries.

"Buying a home is becoming an ever-more distant dream for first time buyers and as housing becomes increasingly unaffordable, we fear repossessions are likely to spiral and more families will face the nightmare of homelessness," said Shelter Scotland director Archie Stoddart.

Following a report from the council that was critical of the Café and its management, the changes the report suggested were implemented. Police testified to the improvements.

PC Ben Merrick, of Lothian and Borders Police, said: "We had a long term relationship with staff, which wasn't always the best. It has improved massively; everything we recommended they do was done for us."

Jones said: "We run an open door policy, which means that anyone can walk in off the street. A lot of the other agencies operate a closed door system so you have to be homeless to get in. Those people who may need help because they are going to become homeless are excluded. So the prevention side of homeless services will be affected if we close."

Sitting with Wiseman, he recalls how he became homeless. His words are tinged with a quiet, strong humour.

"All work and no play. I was earning £35,000 a year, had my own house and car, a wife and three young kids. I was working a lot, and my marriage disintegrated. Rather than have the children run around on bare floorboards, she got everything in the divorce settlement. Everything.

"I was mortgaged, respectable. Now that I'm homeless, I don't matter anymore. It's insulting."

He feels that the withdrawal of funding may be connected to the disputed Caltongate development, managed by privately-owned London development company Mountgrange. The building that houses the Ark is next to the development, which includes plans for offices, shops and flats.

"They've managed to pull funding while the Parliament's out, while the Council's in limbo because of the election. It's all very convenient. The original plan was that the council would give the Ark 18 months notice, so they've gained 15 months.

"If you're developing a property, spending thousands on machinery, men, labour costs, that's a hell of a lot of money. They could save money by shutting this place down," said Wiseman.

Clayton Jones says the council has not been clear on the exact reason for cutting their funds: "In the paper they've said it was because of poor performance on our part, but in the dialogue with our management, they said it was because of a change in strategy, so I am left confused. They were openly critical of us in our last report, but we put in place the changes they requested."

Acting Chief Executive of the Ark Trust Tam Hendry said: "There were changes in staff, including the previous director, and they tried to address all the issues raised by the police and council. The Ark thought they had sorted things but the council still felt they hadn't done it to satisfaction."

Jones said: "I don't imagine that we are the most sought-after neighbours. But I would hate to think the council's decision had anything to do with that. That would be pretty disgusting if that's why."

Service users and staff members alike urged the council to allow them time to demonstrate the effect of the changes, but this time was refused.

"We want to carry on with the work we think is necessary: to provide a shelter, food and resources, a point in the right direction, or even just a phone call," said Jones.

Although the withdrawal of funding has meant the closure of the canteen, their other services such as Space 44, a drop-in facility for women, and Supporting People, which supports service users who have moved into tenancy, are still running. The Trust is trying to raise awareness of the Ark's plight. Members of the public can donate £3.50 to sponsor a meal ticket, and there is discussion of using the building that housed the canteen as a live music venue to raise funds.

Hendry said: "The Ark still own the building, but I understand the Mountgrange developers are looking to buy it. They have offered the Ark a like-for-like resource in a brand-new facility on Calton Road as part of the development, and I think it's a fantastic opportunity. It's just a shame the money to run the place has been lost.

"It's also unfortunate that the funding was withdrawn and there wasn't a transition plan," Hendry adds. "Nobody put extra capacity in place or gave any education to help the vulnerable people. It was just taken away and shut."

With private enterprise again reigning supreme over social provision, the council's purchase of Stephan Balkenhol's £100,000 everyman sculpture in March was, in Wiseman's words, "a boot in the backside."

He said: "They'll waste money on modern art and concrete monstrosities, but let a guy freeze to death in Grassmarket. It's slightly comical in a perverse sort of way."