Swindon charity Gateway Furniture closes due to cost of living

Gateway Furniture's staff and volunteers have supported 2,000 struggling Swindonians in the last 13 years with donated homeware worth £680,000 altogether, but the loss of their town centre shop and rising costs made the project's financial model unsustainable.

Gateway Church leader Nigel Howarth said the religious organisation had invested on average around £20,000 a year to keep the charity going, but that spending rocketed up to nearly £40,000 in just the first seven months of 2022, which has heavily depleted their reserves for next year.

He added: "There's been a lot of thought and deliberation and prayer from all of us, as Gateway Furniture has been a key part of the church, and this was an incredibly difficult decision, it's not the income we hoped for but we explored every option.

"Referrals have gone up - we served 40 families in one month recently - but income has gone down, and the loss of our shop brought things to a head as we had to invest a significant amount of money month by month after that.

"Gateway Furniture has served the town in amazing ways, giving furniture to people who had nothing and making a house a home."

Gateway Furniture’s Havelock Square shop shut in August (Image: Newsquest)

The team collected second-hand furniture from generous donators which was then stored in the Bible Society warehouse next to the West Swindon church before being delivered to those in need, many of whom were referred to Gateway by 60 agencies.

A shop in Havelock Square sold off excess stock which provided extra funds for the charity, but the building's owner decided to sell the place in August.

Despite determined efforts to continue selling furniture online or in a pop-up shop in the church foyer, the beginnings of "good conversations" with the borough council and a successful funding bid, not enough money could be found in the limited time available.

Six staff have been made redundant.

Andrew Williams has managed the project since 2017, taking over from founders Kevin and Dawn Prosser.

He thanked God, his wife Jenny, and everyone involved in the charity, then explained how it benefitted volunteers and clients alike.

One referral gave thanks for providing children and their father with "a bed they could call their own rather than being on the streets or sofa-surfing" and mentioned that without this, the children may have been taken into care.

Andrew recalled how a man called Jay who moved to Swindon six years ago after struggling with alcoholism for two decades was referred to them and, after four months, was offered a full-time job there.

Jay, now sober for almost eight years, wrote a note of thanks: "This has given me the opportunity of living my life.

"I'm in a stable relationship, regained my dignity and been part of something that has blessed the community.

"Gateway Furniture helped put my past behind me and given me financial  and emotional stability.

"I can face the future with confidence and will forever be thankful that this helped give me a future I never thought I would have."

Andrew added: "It's been a difficult journey and I've learned a lot, we've had a miraculous provision of stock.

"I'm very thankful to have the blessing of being involved in Gateway Furniture and work with our amazing staff and volunteers.

"There's a time to plant and a time to pluck up what has been planted. I believe we will look back and say wow, God has something bigger and better planned - he will not let people in these desperate situations suffer."

Visit https://gatewaychurchswindon.org.ukor email info@gcswindon.org.uk