On Tuesday 19 December, Spring restaurant relaunched TABLE, a community eating house, in collaboration with StreetSmart and Somerset House Trust to provide some festive cheer to London’s most vulnerable.

Over 100 homeless and insecurely housed, plus the unsung heroes who work with these clients as part of charities, community groups and NGOs, gathered across two sittings for a special Christmas dinner designed by chef Skye Gyngell.

Guests were treated to delicious chicken and leek pie, buttermilk potatoes, seasonal carrots with honey and thyme, sprout tops and braised red cabbage. The meal was rounded off with Christmas pudding and mince pies with brandy butter.

Attendees included the charities New Horizon, Deptford Reach, C4WS, The Connection at St. Martins, Providence Row, The House of St. Barnabas and Crisis. Homeless guests left with presents and handmade Christmas crackers, chocolates and warm clothing which had kindly been donated. Deutsche Bank, who have fully supported StreetSmart’s operational and administrational costs for the past eleven years, were also present to show their community support.

Sam Forsdike from C4WS said: “As a small charity we really appreciate the opportunity to bring together guests of our project with volunteers in this way to celebrate. Table was a lovely and innovative initiative – all of the people brought from C4WS loved it, from our volunteer coordinator to an asylum seeker staying in our shelter who had never experienced anything like this before! It was very inclusive and a great way to chat to other people from projects across London.”