The Birmingham Law School Pro Bono Group was delighted this week to present over a dozen bags of warm clothing to Sifa Fireside, a leading Birmingham charity which tackles homelessness and supports independence from alcohol.

The donation was the result of a clothing drive, with staff and students throughout the school contributing essential supplies of coats, jumpers, sleeping bags, hats, gloves and shoes, to help Sifa Fireside provide for their clients in the coming winter.

The donation was presented to Lynn Evans, Resettlement and Move On Manager (pictured with Pro Bono Group Fundraising Coordinators Hannah McKay and Faye Spencer). Highlighting the huge support the charity provides to the homeless community, Lynn said:

"We are very grateful to the pro bono group for the fantastic collection of clothes and shoes. We rely on public support in order to provide good quality clothes for the 150 people who use our service each day. Being able to access welfare facilities, a meal, quality legal advice and clean and dry clothing is key to Sifa Fireside’s aim of promoting human rights and social inclusion for the people we work with."

Following a tour of the organisation's facilities, Hannah and Faye commented:

"We were so pleased to be able to organise the clothing drive for Sifa Fireside and incredibly impressed by how many people donated. Being able to see firsthand how useful these will be to the service users makes it even more special. Thanks to everyone and we hope to provide our continued support in this way for the future."

The Pro Bono Group has partnered with Sifa Fireside for the past three years and our student volunteers provide Streetlaw style information sessions in legal areas of key relevance to its clients. These have included issues relating to: squatters' rights; stop and search; rights for EU Migrants; and disability and housing rights.

To find out more about the work of Sifa Fireside visit their website:  www.sifafireside.co.uk