Her Majesty’s Lord–Lieutenant of Merseyside, Mark Blundell, Terry Waite CBE and other special guests have cut the ribbon to open a new community building run by homelessness charity Emmaus Merseyside.

Emmaus Merseyside provides a home, work and support for up to 28 formerly homeless people. The people who live and work at Emmaus – known as companions – gain support and training in order to boost skills, experience and confidence, helping them to move on to independent living. Each companion has their own en-suite studio and has access to communal living areas, including a kitchen, dining room, garden and gym.

Jonathan Masters, Trustee of the Steve Morgan Foundation, unveiled the supporters wall and presented a cheque to Emmaus Merseyside in support of the charity’s work.

Jonathan added: “The Trustees are delighted to be able to help Emmaus Merseyside, an organisation that really makes a difference to the people it helps. The Steve Morgan Foundation grant of £57,000 will be used over three years to fund a community support worker at the new community building; helping the companions rebuild their lives.”

Nigel Mellor, Chair of Emmaus Merseyside, said: “The official opening of Emmaus Merseyside’s community building is the culmination of lots of hard work that has taken more than 15 years. It has been great to celebrate and thank the many generous people and organisations who have supported the development of our charity and social enterprise. We are enormously grateful for all the support we have received.”