Founded in 1986, The Soup Kitchen is a resource for the homeless, the elderly, the lonely and the poor in and around Central London. 

They provide free, nutritious hot meals, clothes and toiletries from 10:00-12:00 noon, Monday through Saturday all-year round, averaging over 90 guests every day. 

This service is run by Alex Brown, his core kitchen staff and devoted volunteers, serving up tea, coffee, good wholesome hot food and conversation with smiles, open hands and generous hearts. The consistency, reliability and quality of the service provides a routine for those living on the streets to come to the kitchen for a few hours and eat, talk, sit and simply be treated as a human being. They have access on a daily basis to this safe haven where they are free to express themselves and free themselves from the stress of their lives on the streets. The space, and the people who attend, both as guests and as volunteers have provided a sense of belonging and created a community for those who are in need. 

Alex is always thinking of new ways to improve the experience and quality of live for those sleeping rough. He has had travelling zoos come to the kitchen to provide entertainment and give people experiences they never dreamed they would have access to, he has recently had street artists come to paint the walls with inspiring murals both at the kitchen and in Shoreditch to raise awareness of the project and to recruit more fundraisers and volunteers, he has reached out to flower shows to take their flowers they don't want anymore to create a community garden to look after, he collaborates with clothing brands, shoe companies to use their stock they haven't sold and give them out to those in need instead of ending up in a landfill on the other side of the world. He is so resourceful and his creativity knows no limits. 

He has also recently opened the first mental health walk-in centre at the soup kitchen for those who need to talk confidentially to someone. We wish to expand this service so we can treat more people, have more therapists and counsellors come to speak with those sleeping rough and help them sort through feelings and experiences perhaps they have buried for quite some time. 

This is the most holistic soup kitchen I've ever heard of or had the pleasure to be involved with. I wish to raise this money to give to the kitchen to help get more supplies, more services and keep growing this beautiful community in whatever way I can. 

Please donate whatever you can. I've said £400 as a starting goal, that's £1 per length. Oh yeah, I'm swimming 10km which is 400 lengths of a 25 metre swimming pool. Yes it's gonna be tough, I don't know how well I'll do swimming for 3 hours but I'll do what it takes and just keep swimming, knowing your donations and my efforts are going to be helping an incredibly worthy cause and incredibly worthy people.

In tandem with my preparation for my race, I will be making my first documentary with The Soup Kitchen, to give you more of an idea how it works and to give you a real insight into the lives of people living on the streets. Stay tuned and thank you for your kindness and generosity on behalf of the kitchen and everyone who attends. Your donations are hugely appreciated and make a difference.