Sainsbury’s Supports London Jesus Centre

SINCE January 2014 in excess of 950 rough sleepers and vulnerably housed people have visited the drop-in centre.

London Jesus Centre is continuing with its mission to support disadvantaged people like them, after it received a generous donation from Sainsbury’s Mortimer Street Local.

The donation of £400, made by the supermarket, will be used to provide food for those who use the London Jesus Centre’s services.

Located close to Oxford Circus, the Jesus Centre offers a range of services including support groups and skills classes.

It boasts a newly renovated tea-room and a drop-in service for those in particular need. The drop-in facility has provisions for laundry, food, showers and much more. A skills suite with IT facilities is also available, in addition to courses and support in a variety of subjects including English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), citizenship, basic life skills, and arts & crafts.

Tim Skene, Centre Manager at the Jesus Centre, said:

“The vouchers will be used to purchase food for those in need in the local community including the homeless and asylum seekers/refugees.

“Funding is also used to provide refreshments for a weekly social and film club. One of our charity’s core aims is ‘to meet the needs of those experiencing social or economic deprivation’,” he added.

Sainsbury’s donation comes from the supermarket’s Community Budget Scheme, which aims to support charitable groups in the local area. The scheme is funded by Sainsbury’s sales of its ‘Bags for Life.’

Sainsbury’s Mortimer Street Local Store Manager, Amit Aswani, said helping the local community is a priority for the store: “Our store is at the heart of the local community and it is important that we can do as much as we can to support it.

“When we heard about the Jesus Army Charitable Trust, we were really pleased to be able to help out.”

Last year, Sainsbury’s Community Budget scheme supported local communities with £135,000 worth of donations, which were nominated by depot and store managers and Sainsbury’s colleagues from stores across the UK.