A place to warm up this winter for Southwark residents

23 November 2022

As costs for basic needs such as heating, electricity and food spiral out of control, councils are faced with providing more support for residents, who would otherwise be cold or hungry.

Today, Southwark Council is pleased to announce its Warm Spaces scheme is open, where anyone who needs to can come along to warm up, have a cup of tea and a chat, and receive advice on how we can help them if they are suffering the effects of the cost of living crisis.

An incredible 30 places are now open for people to visit around the borough, including all of Southwark’s libraries, art galleries including the Tate Modern, pubs and community centres. All are free for anyone to drop in, no questions asked.

Councillor Evelyn Akoto, cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: “Our community is so wonderful in times of trouble, as always we’ve had an incredible response to our call for businesses, voluntary organisations, galleries and pubs to open their doors to those suffering hardship. Each place has a warm welcome, some reassurance and support for anyone who wants to come along. I’m grateful to everyone for their efforts and want people in Southwark to know we’re all here for them, no matter how hard it gets.”

The scheme launched today as part of Southwark’s £7.7m Cost of Living campaign, which includes Warm Spaces, Energy Savers – where people can receive advice on how to save money on fuel bills, and payments to thousands of people who can least afford rising heating bills. The council is also working with the voluntary sector to provide warm packs to those who are housebound.

For more information, see here.

Page last updated: 23 November 2022