Volunteers handed out blankets, sleeping bags, coats, gloves, socks and flasks in special OAPA waterproof backpacks to help the homeless survive the cold winter months.
Greg Mangham, chief executive and founder of OAPA, said: “I am absolutely overwhelmed by people’s generosity. We set up various collection points across London to accept blankets, coats and other items of clothing and we were completely inundated with donations.
“We also had hordes of people from across the hospitality industry give up their morning to help pack the goodies into special waterproof kit bags and hand them out to the homeless.”
OAPA was established on World Homeless Day on 10 October 2018 to help homeless people as well as ex-offenders and veterans find employment in the hospitality industry.
Mangham added: “Our Winter Warmth campaign was designed to help raise awareness about OAPA, because with more financial donations and more hospitality companies signing up to employ those who are homeless, we can get more people into work.
“With bitterly cold temperatures predicted from this weekend, it couldn’t have been timelier, and we met many people who were incredibly grateful for the generous donations today.”