Cullen Property Blog

Cullen Property visit The Social Bite Village

In December 2017 several members of the Cullen Property team took part in Social Bite’s Sleep in the Park to help raise funds and awareness to help eradicate homelessness in Scotland. Thank you to all our investors, landlords, tenants, family and friends who helped us raise a significant amount of over £12,000!

Six months after Sleep in the Park we welcome the completion of The Social Bite Village. Located in Granton, Edinburgh. The Social Bite Village will house 20 people experiencing homelessness in a community-based alternative to the current temporary accommodation model for a period of 12-18 months at a time. This will be a people-centred approach where the community members will have access to intensive support, education, mentorship and employment support during their stay to give them the best leg up into society when they move into permanent mainstream accommodation at the end of their stay.

We went to visit The Social Bite Village before the village welcomes their first community members. The village is made up of 11 houses, each sleeping 2 individuals. These NestHouses have been designed to be energy efficient and eco-friendly. Each house has a fantastic homely feel, all uniquely decorated. The homes have running water and electricity, a kitchen with appliances, W.C. with electric shower, bedrooms with a wardrobe, desk and each fitted with a lock on the door for privacy. As well as these wonderful homes there is a Social Bite Village Community Hub. This is a social space for the support team to work from as well as a place for the residents to gather. Made up of a large kitchen with tables for everyone to cook and dine together and a lounge area for recreational and educational activities.

The Social Bite Village is supported by the charity The Cyrenians who have 50 years’ experience of delivering residential community models to those affected by homelessness. The Cyrenians will provide 24-hour support at The Social Bite Village. As well as providing one-to-one support to achieve individual goals by tailoring a personalised plan appropriate to each person’s needs.

The work and attention to detail that has gone into creating this inspiring village is incredible. The quality of the homes and the support given will provide an uplifting feeling throughout their journey as part of the Social Bite community and further developing from here. The Social Bite Village has created a blueprint in tackling homelessness in Scotland. Along with Social Bite, at Cullen Property we believe that Scotland is a small enough country, a collaborative enough country and a compassionate enough country where no-one should have to be homeless.

Fantastic work Social Bite. We are incredibly proud to be part of your journey in eradicating homelessness in Scotland.

To see more about the inspirational Social Bite Village you can view the video of the village here; https://vimeo.com/270641186