How Help the Homeless programme is rebuilding lives

UK Programmes Officer Fatima Khalid reflects on the power of local leadership in tackling homelessness

In September, I found myself reflecting on how much can be achieved through sheer force of will, even with the most meagre of resources to hand. Help The Homeless (HTH), now one of Leicester’s most trusted frontline homelessness support hubs – and our partner - had unveiled their new building. It struck me that dedication to their community, a particular communal spirit, was to credit for this new space, a place that will soon serve more than 3,000 people in their bid to find a stable home for themselves. 

In the winter of 2014, Arif Voraji and his wife turned their car boot into a roving supply cart for Leicester’s houseless community. They roamed around bridges, tunnels, the city centre and anywhere they could think of to hand out packed lunches, clothing and other essentials to rough sleepers. Arif and his wife were moved to jumpstart the project in this unorthodox way because, quite simply, “something had to be done”, he told me. Every week, they drove through the city, meeting people where they were: on cold pavements, in doorways, and they offered a listening ear without judgment, simply meeting human need with dignity. 

But by 2015, the picture for those struggling in Leicester had darkened. With the city ranking in the bottom 10 per cent of most deprived local authorities nationally, and eviction rates higher than the rest of the country, it was clear the team had to scale up. And in 2017, Corrie Moulds, the current project manager, and Vanessa Ghelani, the services manager, had joined the mission, transforming HTH from a single grassroots moment of compassion, into a cornerstone of the city’s homelessness response. 

Eleven years later, they have pivoted their focus to the legal and administrative side of securing housing for the homeless. More than a decade later, that same spirit still drives them. Only now, their impact spans the entire city. And, as with so many good stories, a chance encounter changed everything. 

A partnership with purpose 

In 2023, Muslim Aid’s UK Programmes Lead, Lucy Rae, travelled to Leicester to help coordinate relief during the city’s floods. Between meetings with local authorities and doing site visits, someone mentioned the name of a small local charity doing remarkable work with people facing homelessness. Curious, Lucy decided to visit the HTH office. 

She found a modest, buzzing space filled with laughter, warmth, and purpose. Volunteers were serving hot meals and offering advice to anyone who walked in. Neither swish nor bureaucratic, this was a hyper-local organisation, trying to make the best of resources available to build effective 1-1 support for each case. In that moment, Lucy recognised something: lasting change grows from within communities themselves. Now, this principle echoes throughout Muslim Aid’s evolving UK programmes vision. 

That visit sparked a partnership built not on charity, but on a shared belief that dignity and hope are best restored through trust, collaboration, and community-led action. In the months that followed, Lucy began working closely to turn that shared belief into something tangible. While Muslim Aid funded their new building, their collaboration wasn’t just about funding, it was about capacity sharing, pairing Muslim Aid’s reach and resources with HTH’s deep local insight and relationships. 

Together, they helped the team transition into a purpose-built facility that officially opened in June 2025. The new space has changed everything: what was once a cramped, makeshift setup is now a bright, welcoming hub where anyone in need can find food, advice, and housing support under one roof. The building acts as a space for clients to find caseworkers, have a hot meal with others, secure health check-ups and simply spend time and find community. 

Since the move, their reach has grown dramatically. Monthly support has nearly doubled – from around 120 people to between 180 and 250. And in just four months since opening, more than 500 people experiencing homelessness have used HTH’s Thursday Hub – receiving hot food, packed lunches and clothing - while hundreds more have been supported through outreach, case management support and advocacy. In 2025 alone, HTH – through legal and administrative tenacity - has helped over 100 people secure housing, supported 12 long-term rough sleepers, and reached more than 1,000 people through its projects. While this is just more than half of Leicester’s houseless population – 1800 were registered in April this year – their reach continues to grow. Not to forget, HTH has been a force in turning people’s lives around with many previously homeless people now either working or volunteering at the organisation. 

A Shared Future of Hope 

For Lucy and the Muslim Aid UK team, this partnership is more than a success story, it’s a living example of their vision – for change to come from within communities – in action. This strategy focuses on empowering local organisations, building capacity, and amplifying community-led responses to housing and homelessness. 

Put simply, those closest to the challenge are often closest to the solution. People like Arif and his team don’t just know the numbers, they know the names, stories, and dreams behind them. For Arif, the new building has been a chance to expand HTH’s reach without losing its authenticity. For Muslim Aid, it’s a chance to live its values and to enable others to lead and stand alongside them. Together, they’ve shown that partnership isn’t about giving and receiving; it’s about recognising strengths, sharing knowledge, and building something greater than either could achieve alone. HTH aims to support homeless people until no one in Leicester is without a home. 

From a car boot in 2014 to a citywide hub in 2025, HTH’s journey is proof that compassion, when nurtured, can become a lifeline. Muslim Aid’s support has provided the space and stability for that compassion to grow, but the heart of the work remains the same: people helping people and transforming lives. 

This collaboration reminds us all that real, lasting change doesn’t happen in isolation, it happens when we walk together, side by side, with faith, purpose, and hope.