AN award-winning Keighley charity which supports people with drug and alcohol problems and complex needs is taking its help on the road.

Project 6 has been presented with a minibus, which will be converted into a mobile ‘intervention room’.

It will travel around the area, supporting people in need who would otherwise struggle to access the charity’s services.

The organisation has continued to provide help during lockdown, via the phone and online – and with some face-to-face services for the most vulnerable, observing social distancing.

But the donation of the minibus, from Community Action Bradford and District, is a major boost.

“We’re over the moon,” said Vicki Beere, chief executive officer at Project 6.

“This will allow us to travel to people who struggle to get into services and help them engage and start making positive changes.

“It will be a while before we can go into people’s homes and there is only so much work you can do with people outdoors. So a converted minibus will provide us with a comfortable and safe place in which to help some of the most vulnerable people in society.”

In the early weeks of lockdown, the charity saw a whopping 400 per cent rise in calls to its crisis service.

Demand for its Keighley Pathways provision reached new levels as many people struggling before the coronavirus emergency were “tipped over the edge”.

Calls did ease off, but have remained significantly above normal levels.

And the charity is anticipating an increase in the number of people with mental health issues and alcohol problems as lockdown eases further – and is planning for it.

Vicki added: “The people we are currently working with are those who will feel the effect of this crisis most acutely and will be feeling its impact long after life has returned to normal. The voluntary and community sector locally has come together to support people during the crisis and this donation is a good example of how we’ve helped each other out.”

To contact Project 6, call 01535 610180 or visit project6.org.uk.