Pret a Manger to sponsor London homeless hostel
Cafe chain’s charitable foundation giving £200,000 to offer rough sleepers both accommodation and paid work
Pret a Manger is to invest in a homeless hostel in London as part of a scheme to provide jobs and training for former rough sleepers.
The cafe chain’s charity arm, the Pret Foundation, “is funded by the sale of some products and customer donations and will invest more than £200,000 a year” in the new shelter, reports The Guardian. Up to 13 people at a time will each be given a room in “Pret House” for between six months and a year, before being helped to move into a home in the private rental market.
Launched in collaboration with the West London Mission (WLM), a charity that helps and supports homeless people, the hostel is intended to get at least 20 homeless people off the streets by the end of the year, reports The Independent.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Residents will join the Pret Rising Stars programme, under which they will be given jobs working in Pret shops nearby. A total of 462 people have been employed under the scheme since it launched a decade ago, with 80% going on to become full-time Pret staff, adds Metro.
Pret CEO Clive Schlee says the hostel project has been in the works for around five years.
“Ever since Pret opened its first shop in London, helping the homeless has been part of our promise to our customers and the communities in which we operate,” he said.
“We set up the Pret Foundation with the singular purpose of breaking the cycle of homelessness, and to do that, we believe that people need three things - food, employment and shelter.”
Minister for Housing and Homelessness Heather Wheeler said the new hostel “is not just about putting a roof over their heads but also about ensuring they have the support they need to recover from life on the streets and get back on their feet”.
“This important scheme will provide vulnerable rough sleepers with the vital assistance they need to secure their own home and rebuild their lives, and I look forward to hearing about its successes over the coming months and years”, Wheeler added.
“It is far from the first time that the firm has delved into tackling the issue - they have been donating unsold food to homeless causes since opening their first shop in London in 1986,” says The Big Issue.
According to its own estimates, Pret donates more than three million items of unsold food from its stores every year.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
The week's best photos
In Pictures Firing shells, burning ballots, and more
By Anahi Valenzuela, The Week US Published
-
Damian Barr shares his favourite books
The Week Recommends The writer and broadcaster picks works by Alice Walker, Elif Shafak and others
By The Week UK Published
-
The Great Mughals: a 'treasure trove' of an exhibition
The Week Recommends The V&A's new show is 'spell-binding'
By The Week UK Published
-
Daniel Penny: subway killing of Jordan Neely opens new front in culture war
feature 24-year-old former marine has been charged with second-degree manslaughter prompting a furious outcry from conservatives
By The Week Staff Published
-
‘France looks more ungovernable than ever’
Instant Opinion Your digest of analysis from the British and international press
By The best columns Published
-
Child homelessness rockets in the UK
Speed Read Shelter says a child loses their home every eight minutes
By The Week Staff Published
-
Wealthy San Francisco residents raise money to block homeless shelter
Speed Read Mayor’s proposal prompts battle between rival GoFundMe factions in America’s homelessness capital
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
Southern Rail staff filmed throwing dirty water over homeless man
Speed Read Three employees suspended and under investigation as video of incident goes viral
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
Homeless man dies outside entrance to Houses of Parliament
In Depth News comes as Office of National Statistics reveals nearly 600 rough sleepers died on the UK's streets last year
By The Week Staff Published
-
Has the government underestimated the UK homelessness crisis?
In Depth Estimates for charity Crisis suggest official figures fail to capture true scale of problem
By The Week Staff Published
-
British children facing Christmas homeless crisis
Speed Read At least 130,000 youngsters will be living in temporary accommodation this festive season, a rise of 59% in five years
By The Week Staff Last updated