Jeremy Corbyn, fifth from left, joined the mayor to open the ‘Solidarity Hub’ on Wednesday

“EIGHT years in the making,” a hub for homeless people providing hot food, clean clothes and advice has finally opened its doors to those living on the streets.

On Wednesday, community leaders met in Seven Sisters Road for the opening of a “Solidarity Hub,” a space to be run by Streets Kitchen.

Set up in 2014, Streets Kitchen is a grassroots group working to help the homeless through the provision of warm meals, fresh clothes and information.

Islington North MP Jeremy Corbyn attended along with Islington’s Mayor, councillors, volunteers and the homeless, with a ribbon cut to mark the launch.

The new space – dubbed a “solidarity hub” – is equipped with a brand-new commercial kitchen that has the capacity to prepare over 400 meals a week.

As well as providing food, 48 Seven Sisters Road will be a place where people living on the streets can come to have showers, and pick up clean clothes and sanitary products.

Volunteers at the hub will also seek to prevent homelessness through legal advice, guidance, and referral to other services, such as Shelter.

Homeless people will be able to access healthcare with regular surgeries held by medical professionals who will hold vaccination days, sexual health screening, and drug and alcohol support.

Streets Kitchen founder Jon Glackin

Upstairs are two empty floors which will be let out to community organisations.

Councillor Gary Heather said: “It’s absolutely wonderful to come in and see this building has been transformed. It’s been eight years in the making, and it’s not been a straightforward path.

But here we are, and we’ve got this beautiful facility, we’ve got a brilliant organisation: they’re road tested, Streets Kitchen, they do the business.”

Mr Corbyn said of Streets Kitchen: “They do fantastic work, let’s give it all the support we can and all the achievements we can, and remember, any of us in any circumstances could end up being refugees, being homeless, mixed up on the streets.

“Most people are two paychecks away from homelessness.

“A society that supports each other is a strong society, one divided by inequality between the super-rich and the poor is not a healthy society.

“We’re creating a healthier society in Islington,” he said.

Islington’s Mayor Troy Gallagher said: “As someone who had a spell of homelessness, I know what it is like not to have hope, nowhere to go to, and the world crashing down all around you.

“I think if I had this here back then, when I moved to London, it would have been a different story, and I would have had hope.”

Streets Kitchen founder Jon Glackin said: “We have to come together. Nobody’s got the solution – we’re all amateurs, it’s all a work in progress. But the trick is working together.

“There are so many good groups in Islington, if we work together we can do a lot of powerful things here. We’re going to have a lot of good services in here: doctors, district nurses, drugs services, alcohol services, you name it, we have it. We’re looking forward to doing some good work here all together.”