Homeless charity celebrates first anniversary and 2,000 meals for the homeless

A charity is celebrating its first anniversary in London by reaching the milestone of providing 2,000 free meals to homeless people since its launch last year.

The Social Bite coffee shop opened its doors in The Strand, Westminster – the first outside of Scotland – in March 2022, and was the first social enterprise coffee shop in central London.

Customers of the coffee shop can ‘Pay It Forward’ by purchasing a meal or a hot drink for someone experiencing homelessness.

So far, more than £12,000 has been donated by customers.

Josh Littlejohn, Co-founder and executive director of Social Bite, said: “Launching our first coffee shop outside of Scotland was a huge landmark for us and to be able to operate a similar model to Scotland and grow our impact work throughout London, too, has been a vital part of this next step.”

Social Bite works with London charity partners including The Connection and The Passage to distribute meals around the City of Westminster in the form of vouchers that can be redeemed directly from the coffee shop.

The charity has also provided employment and training opportunities to people experiencing homelessness in London as part of its Jobs First programme. 

So far, nine people have been placed in roles through the programme in London – including Bola, who works around 20 hours a week at the Social Bite.

Bola, 61, had been homeless for about two months before hearing about Social Bite from another homelessness charity: He said: “This really is a dream job for me that I have wanted for a really long time.

“The training and support that I receive from Social Bite has not only helped me to learn new skills but has also given me more confidence both in work and in my day-to-day life.”

 For more information on how you can help visit: https://social-bite.co.uk/get-involved

Pictured Top: Social Bite Cafe in The Strand (Picture: Social Bite)