Our response to COVID-19
Will you brave the cold to help the homeless? Join Open Door for the St Albans Sleepout – come and brave the cold and help a homeless person keep warm....
10 September, 2020
Rough Sleeper Play
Jo Emery who volunteers at Open Door, has written a play -Rough Sleeper. Jo was inspired to write the play whilst volunteering at Open Door. The play can be seen at Maltings Art Theatre from Thursday, January 23rd to Saturday 25th. Jo said: “ The......
16 February, 2020
Aylett Nurseries
Aylett Nurseries provide Open Door with a Christmas Tree each year, which service users enjoy decorating. Volunteer Co-ordinator Open Door Sarah Chambers said: “A Christmas tree can really make a difference. We’re fortunate to work with Aylett Nurseries who year on year provide Open Door......
16 February, 2020
Pines and Needles brighten things up
In November 2019 Christmas tree retailer Pines and Needles offered Open Door a free tree for the Night Shelter. One of our wonderful volunteers kindly offered to collect the tree for us, and our service users had a great time decorating it. This is a......
16 February, 2020
Jamie Oliver Community Cookery School
Open Door Volunteers were recently given the opportunity to attend the Tesco Community Cookery School with Jamie Oliver. The aim of the programme is to teach over 1,000 community cooks how best to use surplus food donations to help stop good food going to waste.......
16 February, 2020
No More Walls
James Nelson is a man with a remarkable story. He spent much of his adult life as a homeless alcoholic until a near death experience in 1972 caused him to sober up. James’ autobiography ‘No More Walls’ was first published in 1978, and he......
16 February, 2020
St Albans Sleep Out: Friday 6th December 2019
Will you brave the cold to help the homeless? Join Open Door for the St Albans Sleepout – come and brave the cold and help a homeless person keep warm....
24 September, 2019
Leftover Luxuries
On Wednesday 14th August, one of our volunteers Doretta Hogan held a ‘Leftover Luxuries’ jumble sale at her home in St Albans. The event was bustling with friends, neighbours and family to help raise vital funds for Open Door and to find leftover luxuries. It......
18 September, 2019
Open Door links up with Notcutts to boost donations
Open Door has got together with Notcutts, the St Albans garden centre, to find new ways to support homeless people in the district. When customers are about to pay they are invited to make a small donation to the charity by rounding up their bill......
12 July, 2019
Jon runs the Marathon for Open Door
Open Door supporter Jon Fisher ran the 2019 London Marathon using a place that we’d been awarded. After training for several months, he completed the 26 mile run in just under four hours – a new best time for him. So Jon was doubly pleased......
29 April, 2019
Open Door goes to market
On Saturday 7 April our trustees were in Market Place on St Peters Street, promoting the Open Door Charity. The stall helped spread awareness of what we do, and our future plans. Lots of people stopped for a chat, and several signed up as new......
29 April, 2019
Lush gives Open Door a £200 boost
Lush customer Fee Doubleday (left), Open Door’s Chair Kerry Pollard and Lush’s store supervisor Holly Sterrett (right). In June 2018 customers visiting the Lush cosmetics store in St Albans’ Maltings shopping precinct helped raise over £200 by buying special pots of hand-made body cream. Open......
29 April, 2019