Church shelters serve thousands of meals to homeless

The Diocese of London gathered figures from six shelters which showed that they alone had served more than 23,500 meals and housed 463 people overnight.

Based on these figures, the diocese estimates that at least 50,000 meals were served by the winter shelters, while at least 1,000 people were accommodated.

The shelters are staffed by volunteers drawn mainly from London's churches.

One night shelter has typically around 200 volunteers serving over the winter period, the most challenging time of year for homeless people.

The diocese believes that a total of around 2,600 volunteers have given their time to help at a shelter over the winter.

In addition to food and shelter, the night shelters give homeless people travelcards to help them travel across London for doctor's appointments, job interviews and in order to access social services.

They also work with guests to help them find secure housing and get into training or employment, as well as providing a Community Alcohol and Drugs Service.

The night shelter in Camden estimates that it has already housed between 50 to 60 people and helped 25 to 30 into training or employment.

One of the guests commented: “Getting off the streets and sleeping in doors has meant that I could sleep with both eyes closed as I wasn’t on watch. At times the snoring was a killer, but the cold can actually kill.”

The Bishop of London, Dr Richard Chartres said: “The church has been working with homeless people for many years.

"The thousands of volunteers who have opened up the winter night shelters for their homeless neighbours are demonstrating once again the impact of Christian faith and love in contemporary London.”