Taunton Open Door

Who we are

In the first instance we provide a warm welcome in our centre in Taunton, a smile and a cuppa. After that we work to ensure people have their basic needs met. We have showers, a clothing store and provide a laundry facility. We also serve breakfast and lunch with unlimited refills of tea, coffee and juice.

This all works to increase people’s self-esteem and gives them a positive sense of belonging to our community. We then offer tailored support plans for individuals which target key goals such as developing life skills, sustaining accommodation and accessing employment.

Our culture and values

We believe that with the right support people can develop their self-esteem, achieve their goals and have a life they can enjoy and be proud of.

Open Door’s ethos is rooted in the conviction that each person has the potential to build a fulfilling and happy life, depending, when necessary, on the support of others.

Open Door is a place of unconditional acceptance of each person, just as they are. Everyone is special, each person has their story and everyone deserves acceptance, time, dignity and respect. We do not judge nor control.

We firstly seek to address the most practical immediate needs of those who are living on the streets, such as the need for food, shelter, clothing, showers, laundry and for company.

However that is only the first step. We are not aiming simply to enable people to just survive on the streets but aim to empower people to first move on into sustainable accommodation, where they then can be in a position to address any challenges which they may be facing.