How Sober Housing Project Became Amy Winehouse’s Legacy

WISH SHE WAS HER TO SEE IT –

April 14, 2024 – There is so much tragedy in the story that Katya, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, finds it too painful. But in her own journey to recovery from addiction, she has found hope and friendship in the sanctuary set up in Amy Winehouse’s name. Katya lives in Amy’s Place: supported housing for young women who have left treatment for drug addiction.

“When I think about it on a deeper level, it’s beautiful that this exists,” Katya says. “It’s not beautiful in terms of the circumstances it came from, but for it to be here is a beautiful thing. There’s nothing else like it.”

A painting of Amy hangs on an olive green wall, rainbow bunting falling across the corner of the frame. A music room next door sees women sing and play instruments, and an open garden space is a point of pride on a bright spring day. Usually 16 women live here, and they stay for up to two years. Each has their own flat, or shares with another resident, which they decorate and make their own.

Jane Winehouse, Amy’s step-mum and managing trustee of the Amy Winehouse Foundation, says, “There’s nothing better than seeing the young women that have come through Amy’s Place doing well. Some of them have gone on to have children or be reunited with children.

“Some of these young women didn’t think they’d be alive, let alone have children of their own. Some have really excelled in their work. It doesn’t matter what their dream is or what they’re doing, if they’re fulfilling their dream, it’s nothing other than fantastic.”