Another charity shop in Chatham High Street has closed down, after not-for-profit organisation Emmaus Medway collapsed. The shop, which sold furniture and household goods, permanently shut its doors on Wednesday, 23 June. It follow the recent closures of Age UK and PDSA's charity shops in the High Street. A report seen by Future Chatham says that Emmaus Medway had "no alternative but to wind down its operations" due to the lease on its premises expiring and no suitable alternative being identified. Emmaus Medway was based at Cherry Tree House in Prospect Row, Chatham on a lease from mhs homes. However, the premises is understood to be "coming towards the end of its life" and the charity was served notice to vacate. The charity was unable to find a suitable alternative premises for its operations, contributing to its decision to shut.
A spokesperson for Emmaus Medway said: "Emmaus Medway have known for some time that Cherry Tree House was not their long term home and in February 2020 took the decision to look for new accommodation; then the pandemic hit and opportunities for development work disappeared. "The Trustees took the very hard decision to close the organisation at the end of December 2020, following a difficult year financially giving time to rehouse all the Companions." Since opening in 2011, Emmaus Medway - part of the national Emmaus network - supported over 500 people facing homelessness and social exclusion, which it refers to as Companions. Many of the Companions benefitted from work experience by volunteering in one of the Emmaus Medway shops or in other local social enterprises, while addressing their accommodation needs. In addition to the store in Chatham High Street, the charity had shops in Rochester High Street and Sittingbourne, which closed in 2018 and 2020 respectively. It is understood that all Companions who were living at Emmaus Medway when it closed have been supported to move to new local accommodation, or to relocate to another Emmaus community in the UK. All remaining staff, of which there are 4, have been made redundant with one having secured a new role elsewhere. The other 29 Emmaus charities across the UK continue to operate as normal. Comments are closed.
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