Spotlight, 4 December 2019

In the rush of to-do lists, invitations and present shopping, it’s easy to get caught up in the lead up to Christmas. This year, homelessness charity Glass Door is asking people to be mindful of those with no home to go to this Christmas.

Glass Door is London’s largest emergency winter shelter network, with night shelters in Kensington and Chelsea, as well as a year-round advice service to help people out of homelessness. They are also the organisation behind the yearly Sleep Out on the Square – held in Duke of York Square, to raise awareness of and money for those sleeping on the streets.

This Christmas, they are encouraging others to help open a door for someone experiencing homelessness. Their social #openadoor campaign aims to showcase some of the gorgeous Christmassy doors in London (especially around Chelsea) while prompting everyone to think about people beyond their door who are sleeping rough with nowhere to go at this time of year.

One of the shelter’s former guests, James, is fronting the campaign and has shared details of how Glass Door helped him open a door to a new future. He stayed in the night shelters for two months, and has described the loneliness of waking up on the streets on Christmas Day.

“The streets were so quiet on Christmas Day and nothing was open. The hunger, the cold and the wet were bad, but the loneliness and isolation at Christmas was overwhelming.”

Since receiving help from Glass Door, James has found regular work, and has now spent two Christmases safe and sound in an independent flat.

We will be supporting the campaign on our Instagram at @kingsroad.london with a Chelsea ‘doortrait’, and would love to see as many King’s Road locals raising awareness through their own posts. You can also #openadoor by supporting Glass Door with their fundraising appeal.

Read more stories on the Glass Door website, here, and discover more about how to donate to their Christmas appeal at

glassdoor.org.uk/Appeal/christmas-appeal-2019