​ALL TOGETHER NOW! : BE PART OF SOMETHING SINGSATIONAL THIS SPRING

Homeless choir charity celebrates the power of singing together in new fundraising campaign…

The Choir with No Name, a charity running choirs in the UK for people who’ve experienced homelessness and marginalisation, are excited to launch ALL TOGETHER NOW!, their new fundraising campaign celebrating the power singing together has to change lives.

Members of The Choir with No Name face many challenges, including mental and physical health problems, relationship breakdown and social isolation, and drug or alcohol addiction. The Choir with No Name knows that singing together can lift members from these circumstances and make them feel good. The benefits of singing on health and well-being are well documented, and means that our choirs have a long lasting impact on members' lives. Singing together also enables members to form long lasting, genuine friendships, builds confidence and skills, and provides a safe and welcoming community in which members can re-establish their place in the world and move away from homelessness.

To acknowledge the power singing together can have to change all our lives, The Choir with No Name are calling on choirs, vocal groups and individuals across the country to host All Together Now! fundraising events in Jan – March 2017, to celebrate singing together and help raise much-needed funds to ensure they can continue to run their choirs for years to come.

Choir concerts, sing-a-thons, karaoke parties, open mic nights, you name it – if it involves people coming together to sing, then it gets the All Together Now! seal of approval.

Money raised from this campaign will help the Choir with No Name continue their life-changing work supporting people affected by homelessness, such as CWNN Liverpool choir member, Gareth:

“I first started going to choir whilst I was in a hostel and not in the best place mentally. The choir has saved my life without them even knowing it, because they helped lift me out of a dark place with their joyful, non-judgmental attitude and amazing friendly atmosphere. They helped me take my mind off everything and have no worries one night a week.”

The Choir with No Name General Manager, Heather Knight, says:
“We’re so excited to launch All Together Now! this spring, because every week we see the profoundly positive effect singing together has on our choir members and we want to celebrate that fact with choirs and singers across the country.

“Singing with others is hugely beneficial for mental and physical health, and one of the most effective ways to form lasting friendships, all of which can give someone affected by homelessness the tools and confidence to find their feet in the world once more. Watching the transformation from a member’s first rehearsal, when they are often isolated and defensive, to their first performance and on to the pride in their first solo is humbling and inspiring.”

How to get involved in All Together Now! 2017:

Visit www.choirwithnoname.org/alltogethernow and register to download the FREE All Together Now Fundraising Tool Kit, which provides all the info and tools you need to put on a spectacular All Together Now! event in Jan – March 2017, as well as tips on other ways you can join in, sing and fundraise for The Choir with No Name.

#ATN2017 @choirwithnoname facebook.com/choirwithnoname

NOTES TO EDITORS

CONTACT: Rachel Clare | rachel@choirwithnoname.org |t: 0207 202 6648 | m: 07528 099172

CWNN staff and choir members are available for interview on request.

About The Choir with No Name:

The Choir with No Name (CWNN) runs choirs for people who have experienced homelessness and marginalisation. We rehearse weekly, followed by a free hot meal together. Our aim is to enable our members to make friends, build their confidence and skills and find or re-find their place in the world. Whether they have been homeless, have a mental health problem or are otherwise struggling, we give them a safe, positive and supportive environment in which to sing away their worries, have fun and flourish as individuals.

Our first choir – in King’s Cross, London - was founded in 2008 by Marie Benton, a professional musician and at the time also a senior project worker at a homeless hostel. That first choir became a huge success, and since then we have established three more choirs, one in Birmingham, one in Liverpool and another in London.

For more info visit www.choirwithnoname.org