Imagine you are made homeless on the streets of London tonight. Who do you turn to? Who can you trust?

Your physical needs, like food and shelter, become urgent. But there’s something else no-one tells you about street homelessness: just how lonely it can be.

The days stretch out long and empty, with little in the way of company. People walk right by you, but it is as if you are invisible. When night falls, you struggle to sleep for fear that someone will steal your belongings – or worse, that they will try to cause you harm.

How do you stop your mental health from spiralling? How would you keep your mind active, and quieten the voices in your head?

This is the devastating reality for an increasing number of Londoners, as street homelessness hits record levels.

At Turn a Corner, we are doing everything we can to help people sleeping rough have a better day and night. The money you donate will provide:

* Books for mental stimulation and improved mental health.

* Much-needed connection, safety and conversation.

* Essential practical support and information.

* Daily necessities like sleeping bags, toiletries and suncream.

Please, if you are able, support us in our summer campaign.

Turn a Corner is a library and so much more for people experiencing homelessness.

Reading is an essential source of mental stimulation and an escape from everyday life for the hundreds of people that visit us. In 2024–25, we gave out 2,141 books that made people laugh, learn, and feel a whole lot lighter. But we need your support to keep responding in the face of rising demand.

People sleeping rough are twice as likely to experience a mental health condition compared to the general population. There is evidence that reading can reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety – but normal library services are shut to people sleeping rough because they require proof of address.

Turn a Corner is the only service of its kind. We do not ask for ID or any personal details. Returning books is often impractical for our readers – so to avoid extra worries, we don’t require them to.

Turn a Corner is a place of much-needed connection and belonging.

We consistently show up at the same three central London locations, and take the time to listen and get to know people. 80% of those who come to our van are repeat visitors.

Our team includes ten current readers who help out to give back. Because we build authentic, trusting relationships with people, we are often the first place where they feel safe enough to open up or ask for help.

We always do our best to respond. That might include providing info on where to get food or a shower at our partner organisations, sharing our ‘toilet map’, or helping to book a doctor’s appointment.

Even those moments where we just have a chat about football, the weather, the books – it all makes a huge difference in someone’s day, and to their long-term mental health.

In many cases, it is connection that they may not get anywhere else.

We provide the daily essentials too.

Mental and physical wellbeing are inextricably linked. In 2024-5 we gave out 9,256 items to help people have a more comfortable day and night – like sleeping mats, toiletries and period products.

In the winter we offer warm clothes and sleeping bags; in the summer, suncream and water bottles. Glasses are especially transformative for our visitors all year round, allowing them to read, complete forms and navigate their surroundings. But none of this would be possible without your support.

Your donations also us fund us to visit music festivals, where we salvage the 100s of perfectly usable sleeping bags and other items left behind.

Street homelessness is at record levels.

An enormous number of people need our support right now. 1 in 47 people in London are homeless, and 4,427 slept rough in the first quarter of 2025. Will you help us to be there for them?

£5 can provide 5 sleeping bags.

£25 can pay for reading glasses for 25 people.

£100 keeps our van on the move for 5 sessions.

Thank you.