As coronavirus wreaks havoc around the world, never has there been a worse time to have no home. Glass Door is adapting its services to best support those affected by homelessness. Many individuals sleeping rough have been moved into hotels and other forms of temporary accommodation while others are still on the street. Drop-in centres and restaurants are closing, leaving many with no source of food, water, showers or ways of staying connected. We are constantly reassessing needs so that we can best support those in need. 

Please find details of the items that we or our partners particularly need right now below. Urgently needed items are highlighted in red. Unfortunately it is unlikely that we can collect donations in person due to limited resources so please do bear this in mind if you are planning large collections.

We are finding the logistics of collecting and receiving donations particularly challenging at this time. If you would like to contribute, please consider making a donation through our COVID-19 appeal instead, where we will use the funds where they are needed most.

COVID-19 appeal

Miscellaneous items

  • phones and phone credit

  • antibacterial hand-sanitising gel (ideally large)

  • long-life milk

  • toilet paper

  • bottles of water (which we are redistributing to those in need)

  • surgical masks and gloves

Items listed above can be mailed or delivered in bulk to Glass Door's offices (open between 9:00-1700 from Monday to Friday). Address: 155a Kings Road, London SW3 5TX.

Food for those in need

The centres that continue to feed those in need are providing a life-saving service. Please do consider making a donation:

  • Our partners at Refettorio Felix at St Cuthbert's in Earl's Court are offering hot food in takeaway boxes to those in need. To make a donation (ready-made food deliveries sought), please contact Ali Kingsley [[email protected]]. 
  • The Ace of Clubs in Clapham are also offering a take-away service. We will share donation requests as we get them.

We are usually happy to receive donations of non-perishable food, which are used in the shelters and drop-in centres. However, we have suspended donations of these items for now. Please consider donating to your local food bank or to the above drop-in centres instead.

Donations for guests moved into hotels

As of 1 April, there are about 1000 individuals in hotels, and this number is expected to grow to 3000, with another 2600 already accommodated in hostels.

Anyone wishing to donate is welcome to prepare items listed below now, and must be able to donate to St Mungo's distribution hub in Borough, after about 7 March. The idea is for items to be centrally donated and distributed across all hotel sites consistently. We will update as more information becomes available.
  • Food - dry snack items, tinned fruit, tea, coffee, longlife milk, cup-a-soup, packet rice
  • Handwashing laundry liquid or powder - so guests can handwash their clothes in their rooms
  • Clothes - all new or clean used clothes, all sizes. Coats welcome but also indoor clothes. New underwear is a big priority.
  • Activities for their rooms - radios, books, games, playing cards, art supplies, musical instruments, tablets, smart phones (guests all have phones to make contact but not smart phones with activities on), other things they can do in their rooms (eg home exercise things)

Please know your donations are valued

Donations of things we need make a massive difference. Personal hygiene is crucial for self-respect, dignity, and mental health. Many of our guests work hard to look and feel clean and put together.

On behalf of everyone who uses our services, thank you.