About Us

A basement room in the centre of Oxford has become famous as a place of safety, soup and sanctuary. Simple food - sandwiches, cake, fruit, tea, coffee... and soup in winter - is shared with those who need it most, six days a week. Most are homeless or badly housed but there's no test to pass: it's open to anyone over twenty-five years of age, whatever condition they are in. And it's all free of charge.

What we offer is a familiar routine for those on the street with a very unpredictable lifestyle. Other agencies in Oxford provide a whole range of services, but our particular contribution is a friendly, accepting atmosphere with as little aggravation as possible, and all the sandwiches, tea and sympathy we can supply. The Gatehouse accepts people just as they are.

The project was started by the churches of central Oxford as a Christmas emergency shelter in 1988, and still gets much of its support from them. As many as 200 volunteers help regularly, serving food, chatting with the guests and helping with the washing up, supported by a small team of permanent staff. An average of about 80 guests attend during a two-hour session, but on a busy night this will rise to 100. Generous donations of unsold food are provided by local shops and restaurants.

The charity was named as one of the very first Queen's Golden Jubilee Award winners in 2003 and appeared in the background to the Queen's Christmas Broadcast to the nation that year.

Gatehouse is a registered charity, no. 1002741; Registered Office: 13 White House Road, Oxford, OX1 4PA.