5 August 2019

On Sunday 4 August, BBC Sunday Morning Live welcomed Glass Door's chief operating officer Lucy Abraham as a guest. The live debate show centred this week's topic around homelessness and how religious organisations play their part in addressing the crisis.

The programme invited Lucy to represent Glass Door and the growing number of religious groups, mainly churches, that support the charity. 

The discussion followed a study conducted by the Albert Kennedy Trust, revealing that 24% of young homeless people identify as LGBTQ and that 45% of LGBTQ homeless young people (aged 16-25) come from faith backgrounds.

Lucy Abraham (right) and Leigh Fontaine from the Albert Kennedy Trust (left)

People from the local community and churches volunteer at Glass Door shelters in order to offer hands-on support. Said Lucy,

One of our core values is being open access. We welcome people of all faiths or none. There’s no direct evangelism within the shelters although many of our volunteers are Christian and it’s done with a Christian ethos in mind.

As of the 2018-2019 winter shelter season, 29 churches host the night shelters across Kensington and Chelsea, Hammersmith and Fulham, Wandsworth, and Richmond providing around 130 people with somewhere safe to sleep.

Many more churches and other religious groups support Glass Door by offering financial support, volunteers and members of the congregation for the annual Sleep Out. 

Reverend Brian Leathard is the chair of trustees for Glass Door and one of his churches hosts a night shelter, he says:

For twenty years we have been welcoming all who turn to us, because no one should have to sleep on the streets of London.

View the programme online and skip to 38:00 to see the segment.

Update 7th August: Lucy follows up from her interview

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See how your church or religious group can get involved. Play a part in what we achieve by donating / fundraising /volunteering/ Sleeping Out.