Friendship. Food. Futures.
MAKING LIFE BETTER FOR VULNERABLE PEOPLE
The ways our Friends are forced to live are incredibly hard. They might be sleeping rough, or recently placed in housing with no belongings. Many of them don’t have access to nutritious food or have no support system around them. The People’s Kitchen is their safe haven. We are a constant for people whose lives can be chaotic.
We make life on the streets a little easier by sharing hot meals and packages of clothing, toiletries, food, mobile phones and sleeping bags. We work with services to enable people to move off the streets and then we provide food, furniture and bedding to our Friends when they move into their first home. We also offer friendship and professional services to improve mental wellbeing.
OUR FOUNDER
Shocked by news about the death of a homeless man, Alison Kay set up The People’s Kitchen in 1985. After a year, Alison had a team of 40 volunteers and together they opened the first People’s Kitchen to support the homeless by offering food, clothes, and a warm fire to anyone who anyone who needed it.
For her work, Alison received an Honorary Degree from Newcastle University in 1997. Alison passed away in 2001, aged 91, but her legacy shines on through The People’s Kitchen. Remaining true to Alison’s principles; we have been providing ‘friendship and food’ to anyone who needs support for over 30 years.
What We Do
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Friendship & food
To feed our Friends and support the homeless, we serve over 250 meals every day, 365 days a year.
This is a lifeline for people who want to enjoy a meal safe space, with friends who understand and care for each other.
To make sure everyone receives the friendship needed to navigate tough times, we also have a team making support calls to our Friends. By chatting over the phone, we help combat loneliness and boost wellbeing for people who feel isolated or struggle with their mental health.
-
Covid-19
The pandemic has driven more people to our doors than ever before. To ensure all of our Friends were fed during times when restrictions stop us from opening The Kitchen, we offered a takeaway service for our meals.
From 1st November we have been able to reopen our doors fully for our Friends to be able to come in from the cold and eat a hot meal inside. However we are also still currently offering a takeaway service for those Friends who prefer this. We are now open:
- Monday – Friday: 6.30pm – 8:30pm
- Saturday & Sunday: 9.30am – 11:30am
During these very difficult times, we are still giving out care packages including food, toiletries, books and engaging activities like adult colouring. This helps prevent hunger and also relieves boredom during a time of isolation for many.
-
Clothing & toiletries
We make life a little more bearable on the streets by providing essential living items. Being warm, clean and clothed is something so many of us take for granted, but for our Friends it is a lifeline that helps them pause and reenergise.
Thanks to generous donations from our supporters, these include sleeping bags, toiletries and warm clothes. Over at the Alison Centre, we have hot showers available to support the homeless Friends who need it most.
-
Signposts to support futures
Tragedies in people’s lives can lead them to suffer from mental health and addiction issues. A helping hand from The People’s Kitchen can be life changing for those struggling with these illnesses.
From drug and alcohol advice to health support, our network of professional partners in Newcastle work to safeguard our Friend’s physical and mental wellbeing. The professionals we signpost offer empathy and understanding to our Friends, no matter their circumstances. This assistance is essential to helping our Friends move towards healthy, independent living.
-
Volunteering
We are proud to be run completely by volunteers. None of our team are paid, they are simply motivated to help by the overwhelming gratitude of our Friends and the impact that their work has on our communities’ most vulnerable people.
Currently we have 230 volunteers who support the homeless and vulnerable by giving up over 50,000 unpaid hours every year. The kindness of our volunteers is essential to running The People’s Kitchen and their hard work offers a vital lifeline to our Friends.
-
Local partnerships
Based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the community of support around The People’s Kitchen is truly special. We gratefully receive donations from local businesses, charities and trusts which are vital in enabling us to deliver our services.
We are also loyally supported by religious groups, schools, community organisations and individuals, who kindly provide donations that make our Friends’ lives safer, healthier and happier.
What We Do
Friendship & food
Covid-19
Clothing & toiletries
Signposts to support futures
Volunteering
Local partnerships
-
Friendship & food
To feed our Friends and support the homeless, we serve over 250 meals every day, 365 days a year.
This is a lifeline for people who want to enjoy a meal safe space, with friends who understand and care for each other.
To make sure everyone receives the friendship needed to navigate tough times, we also have a team making support calls to our Friends. By chatting over the phone, we help combat loneliness and boost wellbeing for people who feel isolated or struggle with their mental health.
-
Covid-19
The pandemic has driven more people to our doors than ever before. To ensure all of our Friends were fed during times when restrictions stop us from opening The Kitchen, we offered a takeaway service for our meals.
From 1st November we have been able to reopen our doors fully for our Friends to be able to come in from the cold and eat a hot meal inside. However we are also still currently offering a takeaway service for those Friends who prefer this. We are now open:
- Monday – Friday: 6.30pm – 8:30pm
- Saturday & Sunday: 9.30am – 11:30am
During these very difficult times, we are still giving out care packages including food, toiletries, books and engaging activities like adult colouring. This helps prevent hunger and also relieves boredom during a time of isolation for many.
-
Clothing & toiletries
We make life a little more bearable on the streets by providing essential living items. Being warm, clean and clothed is something so many of us take for granted, but for our Friends it is a lifeline that helps them pause and reenergise.
Thanks to generous donations from our supporters, these include sleeping bags, toiletries and warm clothes. Over at the Alison Centre, we have hot showers available to support the homeless Friends who need it most.
-
Signposts to support futures
Tragedies in people’s lives can lead them to suffer from mental health and addiction issues. A helping hand from The People’s Kitchen can be life changing for those struggling with these illnesses.
From drug and alcohol advice to health support, our network of professional partners in Newcastle work to safeguard our Friend’s physical and mental wellbeing. The professionals we signpost offer empathy and understanding to our Friends, no matter their circumstances. This assistance is essential to helping our Friends move towards healthy, independent living.
-
Volunteering
We are proud to be run completely by volunteers. None of our team are paid, they are simply motivated to help by the overwhelming gratitude of our Friends and the impact that their work has on our communities’ most vulnerable people.
Currently we have 230 volunteers who support the homeless and vulnerable by giving up over 50,000 unpaid hours every year. The kindness of our volunteers is essential to running The People’s Kitchen and their hard work offers a vital lifeline to our Friends.
-
Local partnerships
Based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the community of support around The People’s Kitchen is truly special. We gratefully receive donations from local businesses, charities and trusts which are vital in enabling us to deliver our services.
We are also loyally supported by religious groups, schools, community organisations and individuals, who kindly provide donations that make our Friends’ lives safer, healthier and happier.