Dundee Rock Street Chaplains were pounding the pavements at the weekend in search of revellers in need of a helping hand.
The group, which has been operating in the city for the past 10 years, provides hot drinks and a friendly ear to people making their way home after a night of partying.
Every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, the group set up a gazebo outside Steeple Church in the city centre, where they give cold passers-by the chance to thaw out.
Street chaplain and team leader Andrew Burns, who moved to Dundee from a town outside Belfast 17 years ago, came up with the idea of reaching out to young people out on the town.
He said, “We give girls who need to take their heels off flip flops and distribute ponchos when it’s raining. The police like us because we help keep the noise down a group of guys singing will stop to suck the lollies we hand out.
“But, on a more serious note, later on we will look out for people who have lost their friends, especially in winter when you get people falling asleep in the cold weather without a coat.”Not confrontationalThe group is made up of a number of representatives from Christian churches across the city but Andrew emphasised that their priority was looking after vulnerable people. “We are a Christian organisation but we are not confrontational. Sometimes people have a lot of questions and we are there for a chat.
“We have helped quite a few people, including one military man who was serving in Afghanistan. He was very drunk and wanted answers so we invited him to church the next day and, to our surprise, he turned up. He’s going back to Afghanistan later this year.
“We also help out homeless people and girls who are in trouble.”
The Rock Street Chaplains also work with the DUNCAN (Dundee Co-ordinated Anticrime Network scheme), which uses a radio link between nightclub management and police to keep each other informed about any incidents.
“If a girl has had too much and fallen, bouncers will usually contact us to make sure she is properly looked after. Our main aim is to get people home safely.”