Photo of volunteers

We are a registered charity that works with isolated elderly people in Battersea, Lambeth and Victoria.

We are made up of twenty five volunteers three fulltime including volunteers with special needs.

Photo of our founder

In – Deep was founded by a person named Colin Chapman who used to sleep rough beneath a sheltered housing block. He found that a lot of the elderly helped him out with food, clothing etc. He has since found a home and got married and had two children. He founded In – Deep as he wanted to give back to the elderly what they gave to him. Now people that had the problems Colin had see him as inspiration to the community.

We run a range of activities and services for elderly people living in the South of Westminster, Lambeth and Battersea these are:

A weekly breakfast club A monthly Great Roast

Beef dinner in Westminster and Battersea

A massage service A manicure and pedicure

service Various social events A yearly Christmas

Hamper Scheme

Photo of breakfast

We run a breakfast every Friday in Victoria as well as one once a month in Battersea

We offer a range of menu’s all cooked healthily this includes a full English Breakfast and a vegetarian breakfast

We decided to base the breakfast around healthy eating as a lot of the elderly suffer from illness such as diabetes, heart disease etc. which can sometimes be caused by bad eating habits. The breakfast aims to tackle this by promoting healthy eating.

The breakfast also provides a meeting place for local elderly people. A lot of the elderly people in the areas where we are have no family or family that lives far away which can make them feel isolated. Since a breakfast started in March 2002 we have seen friendships grow and a real community spirit develop.

Photo of dinner

Twice a month we hold the Great Roast Beef Dinner.

This is held at our main base in Victoria but also at Battersea once a month

This consists of a three course meal including soup, Roast Beef or roast chicken and stuffing, Roast Potatoes, Yorkshire Pudding, Vegetables and Ice cream and Fruit Cocktail for Pudding

We decided to do beef for two reasons

a) Many of the elderly are on low incomes and cannot afford roast beef

b) Beef is a good source of iron this stops the elderly getting illnesses like anaemia.

The dinner also stops elderly people being isolated as it provides a meeting place for the elderly

Photo of massage

We run a massage service for the elderly

We decided to do the massage as it has a lot of health benefits for the elderly who very often suffer from illnesses such as osteoporosis, arthritis which affect the bones in an elderly person’s body and is very painful.

Since starting the massage we have noticed that it has helped people with osteoarthritis, back problems, knee problems etc who have said that they have improved since having the massage and has lessened the amount of pain and reliance on medication they had before.

Photo of manicure

We run a manicure and pedicure service in Battersea, Victoria and Vauxhall

This is done by qualified professionals

Many elderly people cannot cut their toenails or nails due to arthritis, osteoporosis etc.

Many elderly people also suffer from depression due to isolation the manicure and pedicure gives a person a boost

The massage part of a manicure and pedicure helps boost an elderly person’s circulation and helps prevent heart problems

Photo of hampers

Since the year 2000 we have been doing talks in schools all across London about the work we do and the importance of the elderly including yourselves. In that time you have donated their harvest collections to us. These are then made up into hampers and given out to the elderly at Christmas time.

This gives them a boost at what can often be a lonely and difficult time of year.

It can also provide them with food which lasts several months. This was a lifeline last year with the ice as many elderly people were unable to go out. The hampers provided them with much needed food. The hampers are also important as many are on low incomes

Photo of hampers

The Christmas Hamper Scheme has enabled us to reach a large number of elderly people. Last year we were able to help 360 vulnerable elderly people living in Battersea, Victoria and Vauxhall. With your generous help this year we will be able to continue to do the same vital work. This is now even more important than ever as elderly people face being on lower incomes and the cost of food is rising, so your harvest collection could very well be as lifeline for them.