The aim of Somers Town Soup is to bring together local people and community initiatives.
People can either pitch an idea or come and support an idea by paying a voluntary donation of £5, having some soup and voting for their favourite idea. Donations from the event fund the initiatives in the local community that attendees vote for.
The second Somers Town Soup was a great success, with pitchers from various backgrounds. We had a great range of ideas including a smoothie stall and a documentary exploring life as a young adult on the streets.
Jamie’s winning idea
The winning idea was a sponsored sleep-out pitched by Jamie, a New Horizons beneficiary.
From his personal experience of homelessness after he moved to London eight months ago, having got a six-month contract with TFL as an engineer. Having lost his job two months ago and with high rent prices in London, Jamie then lost his home.
Having had no previous experience of homelessness, when Jamie used to see homeless people on the street he would walk straight past them. His experience has changed his perspective and made him realise how easy it is to lose everything and become homeless.
Sleep-out to raise awareness about homelessness in London
His particular aim is for the staff at New Horizons to gain first hand experience of what it is like to be sleeping on the streets.
The sleep out will consist of local community members sleeping out in donated community spaces for the night. Everyone will bring food, a sleeping bag and pay a small donation to take part.
Participants will be encouraged to raise money through sponsorship too. This will be used to replace the broken washing machines at New Horizons.
Jamie found the experience of pitching at Somers Town Soup difficult, as he had no previous experience of public speaking. He enjoyed the experience though as it gave him a platform to speak on and an opportunity for his voice to be heard.
Jamie wasn’t the only pitcher to get support
One of the pitchers wanted to launch a local newspaper and someone who attended the event and works in media is supporting him to develop his idea.
Jamie’s favourite part of the evening was the voting. He explained that he had never won anything before and seeing the support in the room for his idea during the voting process motivated him.
Want to get involved?
The sleep-out will take place in September, organised by Jamie with support from New Horizons, The Interchange and Origin Housing.
The next Somers Town Soup is on Wednesday 12th October at Basil Jellicoe Hall in Somers Town. Visit Somers Town Soup website for more information.
Having seen the positive impact Somers Town Soup had on the pitchers and the local community, we are really excited for the next one and of course for the sleep-out!