Christmas dinner will look very different for the vulnerable (Picture: Getty Images)
Many of us will have already started on the big food shop for Christmas, filling our trolleys with turkey and all the trimmings, decadent puddings, cheese and biscuits, and numerous other little nibbles.
But not everyone will be enjoying an epic feast like this over the festive period.
For many vulnerable and homeless people across the UK, Christmas Day will look very different, and they won’t have a home cooked meal to tuck into around the table with their nearest and dearest.
Instead, the day will likely be spent alone, eating whatever they can find, or what’s been donated.
And the reality of their ‘Christmas dinner’ will be pretty harrowing for some.
This meal was eaten by Kamga in a hostel on a previous Christmas Day (Picture: The Soup Kitchen)
The Soup Kitchen has released a series of 10 solemn still-life photos showing make-shift meals homeless people have previously eaten over the holidays and what many might be eating again this year.
The meals include ketchup pasta that was once eaten by Kamga, 42, in a hostel and made from long-life food donations.
While a man known only as Paul admitted to having eaten ice cream for Christmas dinner.
The 56-year-old was in the hospital at the time, suffering with a punctured lung due to street violence and the dessert was all he was able to consume because of his condition.
Paul could only eat ice cream in hospital while injured due to street violence (Picture: The Soup Kitchen)
Kevin, 71, ate two cold chicken wings that he ‘plundered’ from a mate’s fridge, and despite his hunger at the time, he says he still feels guilty about taking them.
Meanwhile Wassa, 56, had to tuck into a tin of cold baked beans one Christmas past, with only a free supermarket wooden fork to eat with.
The struggles of homelessness are even more difficult at this time of year, which is why the Soup Kitchen is holding a Christmas meal event in London on Saturday, December 16.
A whopping 300 meals will be provided to vulnerable people, along with presents and entertainment and a donation of £5 to The Soup Kitchen will give one person a seat at the table.
A look at the photo series, which also includes a tin of beans and two chicken wings (Picture: The Soup Kitchen)
Alex Brown, director of the Soup Kitchen, said: ‘Christmas is an especially difficult time of year for those in society that are less fortunate. Our commitment at the Soup Kitchen is centered around aiding those with the greatest need.
‘We believe that every person, regardless of their circumstances, deserves a nourishing meal every day of the year and this sentiment is especially crucial during the festive period.
Full list of people and meals that have been photographed for the series:
Kevin, 71
Two Chicken wings
Pre-cooked, cold ‘Plundered from my mate’s fridge, still feel guilty about it. I’m an honest person’.
Liv, 54
Milky way chocolate stars and a coffee
From volunteers on Christmas day during covid. Lived off junk food during this time what most of the donations were.
Mei, 63
Sliced sausages
Yellow sticker, from the supermarket reduced section. Can’t cook hot food because of their injury.
Matt, 54
Mince pie and a Stella
Bought out during the pandemic by a stranger. They drank together.
Paul, 56
Ice cream
In hospital with a punctured lung, due to street violence. Couldn’t eat anything else.
Kamga, 42
Ketchup pasta
Made using long-life food donations. Cooked it in a hostel.
Abraham, 43
£1.99 McDonalds big mac + chips
Someone gave him a voucher on the back of a bus receipt that he used.
Yusuf, 38
Cold fish and chips
Was raining so hard he couldn’t go anywhere (stayed in tent). When it eased up, he went to a nearby restaurant. They gave him a cold fish and chips.
Wassa, 56
Baked beans
Ate them cold with the free supermarket wooden fork.
Ali, 35
Prawn cocktail crisps, digestive biscuits, and a chocolate
Long shelf-life donations handed out by volunteers during the pandemic
‘The photos demonstrate that not everyone has the luxury of the classic Christmas roast and put the realities of homelessness and those in vulnerable positions in clear contrast to what we commonly associate with Christmas. We hope they will inspire people to do what they can to support those in need this year.’
To find out more about the work the Soup Kitchen’s does, and how you can get involved, or for a closer look at all 10 photos in the series visit soupkitchenlondon.org/
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It’s an especially difficult time of year.