Founder of Standing Tall charity which matches talented homeless people to jobs receives King’s Birthday Honours
Christy Acton, left, and Noham, one of Standing Tall’s success stories
Modest Christy Acton says his King’s birthday honour for helping the homeless is ‘not for me’ – but for the people he’s empowered to get off the streets and into jobs.
Christy, 49, is one of 25 local recipients of honours in the King’s Birthday list revealed tonight, Friday June 6. He has received a British Empire Medal for his services to homeless people in Birmingham and the region.
But asked what he thinks his honour is for, he highlighted the achievements of others, including the team around him but, mostly, the people he helps.
READ MORE: King’s birthday honours for 25 West Midlands science, arts, education and community heroes
Like Steve, who was broken financially and emotionally after a marriage breakdown left him on the streets, until Christy’s ‘Standing Tall’ venture talent-spotted him at a homeless hostel.
Christy says Steve was supported into full-time work with Birmingham firm Lambe Construction, one of the charity’s employer partners, and moved into the spare room of a Standing Tall host to help get him set for independence. He is now thriving.
Says Christy: “He was a qualified plumber but had lost everything and was feeling hopeless – with our help he earned himself a job and a new life, and to top it off he got married last summer and I was at his wedding.”
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Steve’s story is one of dozens of successes at the venture, which Christy launched five years ago after previously working for Birmingham City Council’s neighbourhoods team and then helping set up and run a homeless hostel in Digbeth.
The experience of meeting so many people who felt they had no chance of getting a job because of their homeless status, despite having talent and a strong will to work, was the catalyst.
Standing Tall founder Christy Acton
The project’s unique model sees the organisation sign up employer partners who are willing to take a chance on a homeless person, usually for an entry level job, and matches them up carefully with the right candidate out of those who have been ‘scouted’ via homeless charities and organisations in the city.
They also get matched up with a host household who provide rented accommodation for up to six months in a spare room, while the worker settles into their new job and saves some money so they can become fully independent.
As Christy explains it: “If you’re experiencing homelessness, you have no options. You can’t get a stable job because you don’t have a safe home. You can’t get a safe home because you don’t have a stable job. Thinking about it in terms of options, gives us a hint on how we can end homelessness.
“At Standing Tall we’re matching the talented people with the right stable job, the right safe home and they get 12 months of one-to-one support. All at the same time.”
There’s an 80% success rate, measured by the number of people placed in a job who are still in the same job and have somewhere to live and are thriving. Standing Tall works closely with charities including St Basil’s, Sifa Fireside and Let’s Feed Brum to find job seekers and then help them prepare, usually providing months of support before they get the perfect opportunity.
Noham, one of Standing Tall’s success stories, now working for Network Rail at Birmingham New Street
Employer partners include Network Rail, Barclays, ISS facility services, Taziker, UPP and Bedspace. Birmingham based construction firm M. Lambe Construction is a key partner, and has set itself a target of having 10% of its workforce drawn from people who have experienced or are at high risk of street homelessness.
The model is largely funded by employer partners, who pay a fee to Standing Tall for each recruit they take on, in the way they might to a typical recruitment agency. This covers the bulk of the costs of scouting and preparing recruits.
Another 20% of the income required comes via grants and fundraising.
The scheme is now expanding to London, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds and Bristol, and heading to Nottingham and Derby.
Christy said he was inspired by the leadership of Timpson Foundation, which specialises in recruiting from marginalised groups including ex offenders and the homeless.
Some employers are reluctant, understandably, but by working with us they see how carefully we select and prepare the right candidate for them, said Christy. “Those we work with absolutely share our mission. They can see what a difference they are making and that’s very compelling.”
Of the BEM honour, he added: “It’s nice to be acknowledged, of course, and if it means more employers hear about us and we can open up more opportunities then that is great.
“Every person we help sticks with you but one that really reminds me of the value we bring was Roy, who had spent three years living mostly on the steps behind the Council House in Birmingham. We helped him into work, and eventually he found a flat – taking him shopping to Ikea and then helping him build a bed of his own was really something.”
Noham’s Story
Noham, originally from Eritrea, fled civil war in Sudan to find safety in England. He was ‘talent spotted’ by Standing Tall’s Joel Webster through the homeless charity Let’s Feed Brum.
He is now settled into a stable job at Birmingham New Street with Network Rail. Said Christy: “He has shown extraordinary resilience surviving unimaginable challenges to build a new life in the UK. Over many months, Joel worked closely with Noham.
“What stood out most was his kindness, drive, and genuine desire to help others.”
He is now working as a customer services assistant with Network Rail, who are supporting the Standing Tall mission. “He’s already thriving in his new role, learning new skills and becoming a valued part of the team.”
Noham is also living with one of the Standing Tall host families, in a supportive home where he will be helped to aim for full independence. Said Christy: “He told us he feels blessed to have been given this opportunity, but we feel just as fortunate to have worked alongside him.”
If you want to find out more about Standing Tall, contact Christy via the website. The foundation is always seeking new employer partners and room hosts.