2020
We started walking
In the middle of a pandemic, a few of us walked the streets handing out hot food to whoever needed it. No tent and no van, just meals carried by hand.
From the streets to a movement.
AR Projects didn't start with a building or a budget. It started with a few people, some hot food, and a belief that everyone deserves equal opportunities in life.
How we got here
The first tables
Then came the tables
Folding tables on the street at night, with surplus food, water and hot drinks. People learned where to find us.
The van
Then came the van
The black van let us collect surplus at scale and run full portable soup kitchens, rain or shine.
Tuesdays
Whitehorse Road
A fixed soup kitchen at 75 Whitehorse Road, serving whoever comes.
Thursdays
London Road
A second night at 89 London Road, West Croydon. Two soup kitchens every week.
Today
The hub and food bank
A food bank that runs on structure, and workshops that teach real skills.
Next
Lifting other grassroots groups
We want to help other grassroots organisations in Croydon through the struggles we had at the start, with a place to receive food and a way to get it out.
Why we do it
Our founder, Stefan, lost his mother to drug addiction and homelessness. That loss drives everything here. It's why our soup kitchens welcome whoever turns up, and why every person we serve is treated with dignity.
No one should go hungry, and no one should feel small for needing a hand.
The organisation
A R PROJECTS CIC is a Community Interest Company, number 13801760, incorporated 15 December 2021. Registered office: 62 Bensham Grove, Thornton Heath, CR7 8DB.
Supported by National Lottery funding and Tesco Community Grants.