The Bridge Medical Centre was opened in 1980 to offer health care to homeless people. The central location right on Newcastle’s Swing Bridge made it accessible for homeless people across the city and the centre became a lifeline for homeless people struggling to get help elsewhere. City redevelopments of the 1990s forced the closure of the centre which later found a home at the Joseph Cowen Health Centre in Byker.
Many homeless people have found it hard to access health services because of things like a lack of address or refusal of treatment because of drug addictions. The strain of homelessness can be damaging to people’s health and a lack of healthcare can trap people in a cycle of homelessness and dependency.