Volunteering at Coffee4Craig with the Roadchef team

Last week, S+C co-founder Anthony Chorlton met with Mike Jackson and Sarah Pilling from Roadchef to offer a helping hand at Coffee4Craig homeless drop-in centre in Manchester.

For those of you who've been following our journey, you'll know that we've been offering support to Coffee4Craig since day one. They're our main homeless charity partner and the work they do is incredible.

We've recently been working closely with the team at Roadchef to widen the reach of our mission to improve the lives of people living homeless in Britain, and as we continue to work out how to move forward together this volunteering meet-up provided us with great opportunity to not only do some good, but also to strengthen our bond as potential partners.

Together we served over 100 meals to 78 people on the night. Most of the guests greeted us with smiles and gratitude; including Daniel, a 52-year-old qualified stone mason, and a pregnant lady living on the streets (yes, you read that right). Each person has a story and it's only when you get spend time with these souls that you realise how close to home the problem could become for you.


Some words from Anthony and Mike 💬

Anthony: "It was a pleasure to assist Risha, Hendrix and the rest of the team at Coffee4Craig. The work the guys carry out is nothing short of heroic. You leave the place with a combined feeling of absolute sadness mixed with absolute inspiration.

Being around people who are in such despair and live in such chaotic environments is eye opening, but the fact that such an energetic team is there as a support network for them is truly uplifting and inspires us to keep pushing with S+C."

Mike: "Living and growing up on the outskirts of Manchester I’ve spent a lot of time in the city, and lately I can't help but notice the worsening homelessness situation. Maybe I was oblivious in the past, but now it seems more and more people are sleeping rough. Why?

I was in awe of Coffee4Craig's work. According to one homeless man, there’s nothing else quite like it—a place to enjoy a meal and a cuppa each evening. Since my time there, I've reached out to Andy Burnham's press office and contacts in the foodservice industry. Tons of food goes to waste, and it would be well-received at Coffee4Craig. Fingers crossed for some help."


How can you help?

Coffee4Craig operates with monthly costs of £34,000 but only receives £8,000 from the government, leaving a £26,000 gap.

Financial donations are crucial, but so are food donations. If you're reading this and want to help, please don't hesitate to get in touch as we'll do all we can to help with the logistics. Email hello@streetwiseconscious.com or drop us a DM on any of our social media channels if you want to do your bit.

And finally, you can also support the work Coffee4Craig do by donating a StreetSak after grabbing some of our streetwear. This is a great way for you to get involved whilst also supporting the S+C mission.

Keep your eyes peeled for more work between ourselves, Roadchef, and Coffee4Craig in the future ✌️