Michelin-starred chef Tom Aikens has teamed up with Only a Pavement Away for the ‘Hospitality Against Homelessness’ campaign, launching a cooking challenge via social media.

Food and drink sector workers who have been laid off in America and the UK have faced homelessness following the closure of restaurants and businesses due to coronavirus. According to a report published in London in recent weeks, the increase in homeless people observed in the city centre turned out to be the result of layoffs eating and drinking industry workers. Tom Aikens, the owner and chef of Muse, who is the youngest British chef with 2 Michelin stars he received at the age of 26, has launched a fun campaign by collaborating with the charity Only a Pavement Away (OAPA) for employees struggling with homelessness. With “Tom Aikens Charity Cooking Challenge,” chefs donate £5 and try to cook in five minutes and post videos of cooking with #fiveminutefeast and #hospitalityagainsthomelessness tags on social media then, they invite five more friends to the challenge.  All donations collected are directed to OAPA to help all homeless restaurant employees, whether they are members of Only a Pavement Away or not. Successful chef Aikens said: “I’m delighted to be a part of a charitable project that plans not only to help those in need now, but also to support them into the future as well. To be able to encourage people to take part in this challenge for such a great cause is an amazing feeling and I’m thrilled to be able to help in this small way.”