Muslims and Christians in Shepherd's Bush Come Together to Help The Homeless

Homelessness has been a problem in Shepherd's Bush for many years. As long ago as the turn of the 20th Century, Hammersmith MP Sir William Bull was appalled to see Shepherd's Bush Green become "home to destitute unemployed sleeping rough".

Homeless suffer from a life expectancy that is "30 years less than the general population", according to Bob Mayo, vicar of St Stephen's church on the Uxbridge Rd.

And things are not improving. Numbers of homeless people "have increased by 30% over the past 20 years". However, our local communities are coming together to try to help out, with inter-faith co-operation from Christians and Muslims.

In a new joint project, St Stephen's and an Islamic charity, the Al-Khair Foundation, have come together to provide sleeping bags as part of their "Keep Britain Warm" campaign.

In the photo above, Rev Bob Mayo is pictured with a local imam.

Bob said: "It is great to have two faith groups work together, helping to draw our communities together, and helping out homeless people."

Bob was also delighted with the high quality sleeping bags supplied by Al-Khair. As he put it: "the homeless get a better quality sleeping bag from the muslims than they do from the Christians".

Every Monday St Stephen's church puts on a film night for rough sleepers in Shepherd's Bush, with the screening taking place in the St Stephen's Church Hall.

The Bush Telegraph offers a personal view on life in Shepherd's Bush. If you would like to contribute a story about our neighbourhood, email us at shepherdsbushblog(at)gmail.com. And do leave a comment in the section below.