In 1870 three old school friends – Tom Pelham, Arthur Kinnaird and Quintin Hogg – were so moved by the poverty around them, they felt they had to do something about it. They founded an organisation called Homes for Working Boys.
Pelham had worked with Dr Barnardo, rescuing homeless children. Hogg founded the Regent Street Polytechnic, now the University of Westminster. Kinnaird captained the winning teams in six FA Cup Finals.
By the 1920s there were six Homes for Working Boys in London.
At the same time, another group of philanthropists – the Reverend Prebendary Gage-Brown and parishioner Constance Allen – formed the Fellowship of St Christopher to house the homeless and jobless young men living rough in London.
In the 1940s the Fellowship identified another group who needed help towards a better future, and began to accept young offenders.
The Second World War presented new difficulties for St Christopher's and the Homes for Working Boys: some of their properties were taken over as accommodation for soldiers, and others were destroyed in the Blitz. In spite of this, both organisations managed to provide housing for young men who needed it. Large numbers of these residents went on to fight for their country. Many were decorated for their bravery and one young man received the highest honour, the Victoria Cross.
After the War, William Beveridge, one of the architects of the welfare state, cited both the Fellowship of St Christopher and the Homes for Working Boys as models of the role that voluntary societies could play. He praised their independence, initiative and flexibility, and saw them as central to the full development of the welfare state.
In 1967 the two organisations merged to form today's St Christopher's Fellowship. Its first priority was to provide staffed homes and hostels for children and young people in local authority care.
In the 1970s St Christopher's launched its first leaving care projects, providing independent flats with 24-hour support, and in 1976 it was registered as a housing association, extending its support to more young homeless people.
In 1980 St Christopher's opening its first supported housing project.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, St Christopher's continued to expand and develop its supported housing for vulnerable young people. New houses were bought and partnerships established with larger housing associations and local authorities.
The 1990s saw several firsts for St Christopher's: the opening of a specialist support project for young black men in southeast London, and in 1994 the establishment of a groundbreaking leaving care project in partnership with a local authority, in its own building.
The same year St Christopher's won the contract to run children's homes for the City of Westminster.
Over recent years, the charity has gone from strength to strength, working in partnership with more and more local authorities, inside and outside London. St Christopher's has taken on projects in Bedfordshire, Sandwell, Southend and the Isle of Man, where it is one of the Government’s preferred providers of a variety of children’s services.
In the 21st century St Christopher's continues to grow, to innovate, to respond to the needs of its service users and partners. New services have been introduced such as foster care and spot purchase children's homes, making a real difference in the lives of more and more children, young people and vulnerable adults.
Caring for children and young people since 1870