Skem Spirit

Stand for your own

Ten businesses. £100,000.
300 lives changed in Skelmersdale and West Lancashire

Skem needs you

Parts of Skelmersdale are among the most deprived areas in England. When someone here loses their footing, they fall fast. And often there’s no safety net to catch them. 

More than 382,000 people in England are homeless right now. Most aren’t sleeping rough. They’re sofa surfing, in temporary accommodation, or somewhere unstable. Some of those people are from our community.

Skem Spirit is about changing what comes next.

Skem SPirit Goal

One thing changes everything

Homelessness isn’t just about a roof. Without a stable home, nothing else can change.

  • No counselling. It’s hard to open up when you don’t know where you’re sleeping.
  • No health appointments. Letters go missing. People move around. Support slips away.
  • No work. You can’t focus on a job when you’re simply surviving.

Every service that could help, from counselling to job support and health appointments, depends on one thing being sorted first: a safe, stable place to live. That’s what Skem Spirit funds.

That's what Skem Spirit funds.

Birchwood: rooted in Skem for over 20 years

Birchwood has been working in Skelmersdale for more than two decades. We’re a local charity offering:

  • Supported housing
  • Mental health services
  • Counselling
  • Employment support

We stay with people until they can stand on their own.

Our model is built on lived experience and long term commitment. Many of our staff know first hand what homelessness and mental health difficulties do to a person. We understand that a stable home is the foundation for everything else.

Proof it works

People who’ve had our support don’t just get through a crisis, they move forward.

These aren't targets.
They're what we already deliver.

Birchwood’s work has also helped keep over 1,500 people out of A&E and away from GP services, easing pressure on local health services while changing lives in the process.

What Skem Spirit funds

Skem Spirit brings together and strengthens the work we’re already doing in Skelmersdale and West Lancashire.

  • Supported housing in Skem – including our Heversham project, giving people a stable place to start from.
  • Integrated Move-On Programme – for people who now have a place to call home but are still at risk of losing it.
  • Wraparound support – counselling, mental health support, and employment help that turn a safe home into a fresh start.

Together, these create clear pathways from crisis to independence, built on a model we’ve been refining for 20 years.

The Skem Spirit Goal
We're raising £100,000 by July.

Hit that target and a private donor unlocks £250,000 more. That’s a £350,000 programme supporting 300 people across Skelmersdale and West Lancashire.

The difference between this programme happening, or not, is what we raise between now and July.

Be one of the Skem Ten

We’re inviting ten West Lancashire businesses to become founding partners of Skem Spirit.

  • Each commits £10,000
  • Together they unlock the full £350,000 programme
  • Only ten places – a small group with a big, visible impact

What founding partners receive

This is a real partnership, with accountability and visibility.

Recognition from day one

Your name across Skem Spirit campaign materials
and regional press.

Quarterly impact reports

Real outcomes, so you can see exactly what your
support is doing.

Full CSR report

Ready to share with your board, staff, and stakeholders.

Site visits and staff engagement

Opportunities for your team to see our work frst hand
and get involved.

Regional press coverage

Throughout the year, as the programme progresses.

What Skem Spirit funds

Skem has a reputation. But the people who really know it also know it’s a place where people look out for each other.

When a relationship ends, someone loses their job or hits a mental health crisis, they don’t plan on losing their home. Without the right support, people can get trapped with no way out.

Skem Spirit is built on the belief that our community doesn’t look away. It stands for its own.

Become a Skem Spirit founding partner

Ten businesses. £100,000. 300 lives.

If your business wants to be part of this, we’d love to talk.
Let’s have a conversation.

Contact Stella
[email protected]