Prince William visited BCP to address homelessness via Homewards, touring housing and a college work program.
William leads Homewards. It’s a Royal Foundation program. They want to fight homelessness. The project focuses on six UK areas. BCP is one included area. He toured the Poole housing. It’s run by BCHA.
He celebrated a new partnership. Lloyds Banking Group joined the effort. Charlie Nunn came along too. He is the bank’s CEO. William spoke about helping people. He wants to make it a national priority. He wants to address homelessness over these five years.
He talked to residents about their experiences. Chloe has lived at Millennial House since August. She spoke with the prince. Chloe finds the support amazing. It lets her live locally. She can also go to therapy.
A former resident, Douglas, joked about being difficult. William replied that everyone can be. William discussed humanizing homelessness. He stressed the importance of changing views.
He planted vegetable seeds with residents. He called gardening therapeutic. He then went to the college. He met young people in Homewards. It gives training to people facing homelessness risks.
Since September 2023, partners have worked together. That includes Sunseeker, the college, and Faithworks. They create ways into jobs. He met Sunseeker’s HR director. They discussed business roles in tackling homelessness. He also spoke with Skills Academy graduates. They now work in the boating industry.
Max Bowden finished the course. Now, he works for Sunseeker. He felt the visit was casual. He said William seemed genuinely interested. Students saw him leaving Sunseeker. Natasha Gorry asked for a hug. He gave her one and then clapped hands with her.
He told them it was nice to see them. He reminded them they had classes. He joked he’d get in trouble otherwise. The students said they had free time. William smiled at them. He commented on the nice weather today.