Hundred for the Homeless

1. Who are you and what did you do before you joined us at Crawley Open House?

My name is Karen Young and prior to starting at the Open House I was a police officer for 20 years – For the last 10 years I have worked at Crawley Police Station as a Detective in various ranks and roles.

 

2. How will you help our clients in your current position?

I am the new head of residential services so I will be looking to help and support the clients in the hostel and the move-on properties with any needs they have whether they be personal or accommodation needs and looking to ensure the services offered meet the needs of everyone who needs them.

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3. Are you originally from Crawley? How did you hear about COH?

I was born in Hemel Hempstead however have lived in Crawley for almost 20 years. I knew of COH from my previous job.

 

4. Why choose to work at COH?

I have seen first-hand the amazing support that COH offer to its service users and those in the community and I wanted to be part of that team and offer my expertise and knowledge where I can.

 

5. What were some of your expectations before joining COH?

I was just hoping it would be an open, friendly and supportive place to work and it certainly is that.

 

6. What are some of the goals you would like to achieve at COH? 

I would like to offer support to service users so that they see me as someone who is approachable and keen to support them the best I can. I would also like to develop a good multi-agency approach to how we support and care for our service users.

 

7. Like at any job, working at COH can become stressful sometimes, so what do you do for fun?

My teenage daughter is a competitive swimmer so I spend time every day at K2 and can be found transporting her round the country for various competitions – we are off to Sheffield at the end of July as she has qualified for Open Water Nationals where she will swim 5k in a lake! Other than that I enjoy keeping fit and walking with my 2 dogs.