London’s Euston station is hosting a Christmas lunch to bring “festive cheer” for those who will spend the holidays sleeping on the street. 

With trains not running on Christmas Day, the empty concourse will be filled with decorations and used as a shelter for the homeless for the first time. 

The tables will be set for a meal to feed some 200 people, with rail staff and charity workers from St Mungo’s and Streets Kitchen pulling together to serve the food. 

Take action: Help the Most Marginalised and Vulnerable Find Shelter

“Using a station to give homeless people a Christmas dinner and some festive cheer is a great thing to do,” said Steve Naybour, from Network Rail. 

“I’m proud to say we’ve had lots of interest from Network Rail colleagues to volunteer to come along on the day to help out. Everything, including people’s time, has been donated.” 

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Beth Nordon, from St Mungo’s, said: “Many people become homeless because of relationship breakdowns so Christmas can be a particularly lonely time for some of our residents.” 

More than 8,000 people slept rough on London’s streets during the year 2016-7 — a number that has more than doubled in the last six years and increased by 170% in the past decade, according to homeless charity Streets of London. 

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St Mungo’s runs more than 300 projects across the UK providing a bed and support to more than 2,700 homeless people. 

Grassroots organisation Streets Kitchen feeds 1,000 people living on the streets every week. 

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This London Train Station Will Become a Homeless Shelter on Christmas Day

By Imogen Calderwood