Run4It is delighted to support Social Bite’s Festival of Kindness – a movement encouraging individuals and communities to spread festive goodwill to those who need it most, this season.
For those not yet familiar with the great work Social Bite does to tackle homelessness and food poverty, this article serves as a brief introduction.
Christmas Kindness in Action
Following the devastating impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, homeless and vulnerable people need our help this Christmas more than ever.
Social Bite's Festival of Kindness from Jamie Boyd on Vimeo.
Social Bite’s Festival of Kindness will be raising vital funds and collecting gift donations to help provide the following:
- Tens of thousands of Christmas Dinners and Food Packs to those in need this Christmas.
- Tens of thousands of gifts to homeless and vulnerable families, children, and individuals.
- Essential shelter to those without a roof over their heads in the winter months.
How you can help
Gift one, donate one!
From the 1st December you can give more than a gift this Christmas. For every pair of Balega socks purchased in-store or online at Run4It in December, a pair of crew socks will be donated to Social Bite's Festival of Kindness and distributed across Scotland to those in need.
*Maximum number of pairs to be donated: 1000 pairs. Crew socks to be donated are not Balega socks.
Visit the Trees of Kindness
From 26th November - 23rd December, Social Bite is inviting the public to donate presents to those most vulnerable this Christmas and place them under the Trees of Kindness. You’ll find these trees in St Andrew's Square Edinburgh and Vinicombe Street in the West End of Glasgow. The charity will be distributing these gifts, along with Run4It’s donation of crew socks throughout Scotland to those in a situation of homelessness, and children and families living in poverty.
Donate
You’ll also be able to donate to the festival. Just £5 could help buy a homeless person a Christmas Meal. To donate, visit festive.social-bite.co.uk
About Social Bite
Social Bite is both a charity and social enterprise. Since 2008, it’s been on a mission to end homelessness.
How it all started
Social Bite actually began as a small sandwich shop in Edinburgh and it’s passion to help started when a 19 year-old called Pete, who was homeless, plucked up the courage to come into the Rose St café and ask for a job. Cofounders, Josh LittleJohn MBE and Alice Thompson, welcomed him to the team. Fast-forward to today and the charity now has 72 staff and 100 regular volunteers - a third of whom have experienced homelessness – across several cafes, a restaurant and a catering business.
Breaking the cycle of homelessness
Social Bite’s overall aim is to create solutions that break the cycle of homelessness, using supported employment and housing models that enable people to transform their own lives. Its projects include giving out free food (through which they connect 550 people a week with good meals, support and opportunities), an employment academy, a Village and a large Housing First project.
Social Bite’s Covid-19 response
On Friday 20th March 2020, the charity re-purposed our social enterprise kitchen and cafes to start making free lunch bags, meals and essentials packs for people experiencing homelessness, food poverty and holiday hunger.
To date Social Bite has made and sent out almost 600,000 lifeline parcels to individuals, families, children and the elderly through 99 charity partners and community groups across Scotland and London.
Find out more
Learn more about all the ways Social Bite is working to end homelessness, and how you can help them on their mission! Visit social-bite.co.uk.