Turn a Corner is a mobile library and support hub for people experiencing street homelessness in London.
We provide...
Connection and conversation
We help reverse the cycle of dehumanization and isolation that many people sleeping rough experience.
Need to use Turn a Corner?
Anyone is welcome at Turn a Corner, no appointment needed.
We’re in central London. Here’s how to find us.
“You get to know the staff. They're very nice, very nice people - they're like friends. It's the closest thing to friends that you make when you’re homeless, because you see them every week.”
– Wendy, Turn a Corner visitor
Street homelessness can be a deeply lonely experience.
Hundreds of people walk right by you, as if you are invisible.
It’s hard to sleep at night in case someone steals your belongings – or tries to cause you harm.
It’s little wonder that people sleeping rough are 2x as likely to experience a mental health condition, compared to the general population.
Turn a Corner exists to counteract this isolation. We offer a warm, welcoming space where connection thrives.
Turn a Corner in 2024-5
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People
supported to have a better day and night.
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Books
given out to help people laugh, learn, and feel a whole lot lighter.
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Essential items
given out like sleeping bags, warm clothes and toiletries.
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Giving or receiving a book is a moment of much-needed connection and belonging.
An opportunity to help reverse the cycle of dehumanization and isolation.
Reading is an essential escape for many homeless Londoners. Books provide mental stimulation and connection to fill the long days and nights.
There is even evidence that reading can reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety.
We put reading back within reach.
We meet people who are street homeless where they are, and we do not ask for ID or any personal details.
Returning books is often impractical for our readers – so to avoid extra worries, we don’t require them to.
Our van is fitted out just like a public library.
With carefully selected literature, a choice across genres and languages – from comics to classics, poetry to puzzle books.
And if our readers want a book that we don’t have? They can let us know, and we will do our best to source it.
I feel that the service from these marvellous book fans (the volunteers) and the very committed, caring staff is essential.’
– Turn a Corner reader
Our library is often the first place where people feel safe enough to open up or ask for help.
We consistently show up at the same three central London locations, and include ten current readers among our volunteer team, to help to build trust.
Even those moments when people chat to us about football, the weather, the books – it can make a huge difference in their day (and ours!), and to long-term mental health.
In many cases, it is connection that people may not get anywhere else.
We provide up-to-date practical information.
This includes safe places to sleep and local toilet, washing and drinking water facilities.
This information can be life-changing but difficult to access, as details change all the time. Turn a Corner’s trusted presence on the streets means that we have become a natural hub for the homeless community.
Homelessness is at record levels.
Rough sleeping in England is at its highest level since records began in 2010. An estimated 4,793 people were sleeping on the streets in 2025, with the highest numbers in London.
Will you help us to be there for them?
We give out essential items like sleeping bags, clothes and toiletries.
Mental and physical health are inextricably linked. We provide items that help people to have a better day and night, like sleeping bags, clothes and toiletries.
In the winter we offer warm clothes and sleeping bags. In the summer, it’s sun cream and water bottles.
Glasses are transformative for our visitors all year round – for reading, but as our driver Steve says, you can’t do much of anything without them!
We work in partnership with many organisations to source items and keep costs down.
Including Vodafone, WrapUp London, a Good Thing, Good Thing Foundation, Beauty Banks and Showerbox.
And we visit music festivals, where we salvage the 100s of perfectly usable sleeping bags and other items left behind.
More from Turn a Corner
Need to use Turn a Corner?
Anyone is welcome at Turn a Corner, no appointment needed. Here's how to find us.
Word on the Water x Turn a Corner
Word On The Water (the London bookbarge) hosted two amazing live music acts in support of Turn a Corner.
What’s it really like sleeping rough in London?
Sam and Steve from Turn a Corner spent the night on the streets to better understand the reality. They wanted to see firsthand what support is available – and what’s missing.
Why libraries are an essential service for the street homeless community
Turn a Corner featured in The Friend magazine.