Centrepoint helpline: Celebrity chef Aldo Zilli calls on Londoners to 'wake up' to homelessness

Homeless appeal: Italian Chef Aldo Zilli gives a Masterclass to residents at Centrepoint
Chloe Chaplain11 February 2017

Celebrity chef Aldo Zilli called on London to “wake up” to the problem of homelessness as Centrepoint prepares to launch its first helpline for young people.

The Italian chef was holding a cooking class at the youth homelessness charity centred around teaching people life and employment skills.

Mr Zilli hosted the class at the Dean Street Café in Soho – which is staffed and run by Centrepoint residents.

The chef has long since had an interest in helping the homeless, as he experienced it himself as a teenager.

Cooking class: (L-R) Calum Fuller, Dean Masters, Aldo Zilli and Abdul Lelo Ndambi

“I was homeless at 16 when I left my home in Italy and moved to Munich,” he said. “I moved there because I lived in a fishing village where, in the winter, there was nothing to do and no jobs.

“I had somewhere to go when I got there but, when I arrived, I was let down. It was a struggle at the beginning.”

Mr Zilli was homeless a “short amount of time” before getting a job in a kitchen – which sparked his interest in cooking.

After three years he moved to London, going on to open a string of celebrated restaurants across the city.

He spent many years both living and working on Dean Street – a stone’s throw away from the Centrepoint headquarters.

“Having lived in Soho for 30 years you see that homelessness is a big problem,” he said. “London does not deserve to be in this state with so many homeless people.

“We need to wake up and smell the coffee and we need to look after what is in front of us and what we are facing every day.”

Dean Masters, who runs the training at the café, said the cookery scheme is a "social enterprise about trying to get young people into work".

“And everyone needs to learn to cook at some stage in their life – even simple stuff like boiling an egg," he said. "It is good for them to learn these skills.”

Mr Zilli added: “And it is healthy for them because then they don’t need to rely on fast food or ready meals.

“It is all about improving their lives, what they are doing and where they are living."

Abdul Lelo Ndambi is one of the young Centrepoint residents who is taking part in the scheme.

After being trained by Dean he has managed to get a placement at Mod Pizza in Leicester Square.

Enthusiastic student: Abdul Lelo Ndambi with chef Aldo Zilli

“Centrepoint gave me a lot of links which, if I was at home, I don’t believe I would have had," he said.

“Right now I am just building the foundation but one day I would like to own a restaurant.”

The money raised by the Standard’s Young and Homeless helpline appeal will also help fund workshops like the one Abdul attends.

“The helpline is great and will be good for young people who need it in the future,” he said. “It won’t be hard for them to get help straight away.

“It would have been good for me because I would have had advice which would have made things easier. The extra support will be there for the kids in the future now and I am happy to see that.”

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