The restaurant staff helping people who are sleeping rough in Scottish city centre

When Rachel Elliott began to regularly spot a homeless man sitting on the street near her workplace in central Edinburgh, she became worried.

It was the beginning of winter, Edinburgh’s Christmas market ice rink, bars and attractions had begun to spring up along the city’s George Street and the temperatures had started to plummet.

Concerned for his welfare, Ms Elliott immediately knew who to call.

The Scotsman has teamed up with Cyrenians for its winter campaign. | Cyrenians

“He wasn’t someone I’d come across before and I suddenly started seeing him every morning,” she says. “I was saying hello to him every day as I was coming into work and I decided to give Cyrenians a call to see if there was anything they could do.”

Donate to our campaign using this QR code. | Cyrenians

Ms Elliott’s employer, restaurant Fazenda, has a partnership with charity Cyrenians, which works to tackle homelessness. Along with other organisations based in the area, Fazenda, where Ms Elliott is relationships and events manager, tries to keep an eye out for people in the local community who are without a place to live..

“When I saw this gentleman near the restaurant, I got in touch with the team at Cyrenians and they were really great,” she says. “I phoned them, and within the day they were in here chatting to me about it and had tried to get in touch with the gentleman and offer him support.”

Fazenda staff have all been given access to the number for the charity’s helpline, which they can phone to alert Cyrenians’ street team to any vulnerable people living rough, particularly during the winter.

“The charity has a helpline where you can get in touch with the street assist team, if you see someone who you think might be at risk,” says Ms Elliott. “It’s really important to pass that message on and make sure that people are aware of this service that they do.

“Being based so centrally, it's so important that we are looking after our community.”

The restaurant has spent three years working closely with Cyrenians to raise funds for the charity, which has also partnered with The Scotsman for its winter campaign.

Recently, it created a non-alcoholic cocktail using products grown by Cyrenians’ farm, including honey and lavender and red berries - and donated the proceeds to the charity.

“Our latest cocktail was called Honey Renaissance, it was completely non-alcoholic,” says Ms Elliott. “We really wanted to tie in with the work they do, and we felt that removing that alcohol element was really important.

“It was really popular, people were asking to buy the honey. It was very special, because it could showcase the farm and what they do.”

This year, The Scotsman is supporting Cyrenians’ Winter Appeal, with reader donations helping them offer care, community and hope to those who have been struggling for too long.

Donate to Cyrenians’ winter campaign here or by using the QR code above.