One year ago today, three concerned volunteers took drastic action to improve the welfare of the homeless in their town.

Zoey Smith, Karla Bryan and Colin Ball banded together to form the One Love Soup Kitchen. And while soup kitchens were nothing new to Southend, this one provides much more than just a hot meal.

Its base at the Holybrook building site on Carnarvon Road offers the opportunity for homeless people to do things we take for granted like shave, get a haircut and watch a film on television.

In the last year, the kitchen has become an established community for its 40 volunteers and the more than 100 homeless people who use it.

“People who are homeless can feel quite lonely so it’s important that for a little while, they can come down and just engage with others,” explained Mrs Smith.

She initially wanted to help the homeless to show her own children just how lucky they were.

“Some homeless people are just so very thankful to be given a pair of shoes without holes in them, they can’t thank you enough,” she explained.

Ms Smith now works as a full time volunteer for the kitchen, with her ten-year-old helping out with the baking behind the scenes.

One Love began as a makeshift set-up at Clarence Road Car Park, but something more substantial was needed as “the number of homeless just kept creeping up”, says Mrs Smith.

The kitchen moved to its current base in August thanks to Jason Speller, a builder on the Holybrook site who suggested to his manager about opening the site up to rough sleepers. The new facility provided Southend’s homeless with the luxury of showers, washing machines and tumble dryers.

“We could then help them keep clean and give them some dignity and pride about themselves,” explained Mrs Smith.

Fast forward one year, and the kitchen’s volunteers are dishing out around 100 meals a week on the Monday and Thursday evenings that the kitchen is open.

As well as providing essential items such as toiletries, clean underwear and socks, other services are offered too.

“We try to give these guys something to look forward to,” explained Mr Ball, a retiree.

“We have a hairdresser who comes down to cut their hair once a month, and a chiropodist looking at their feet.

“Because homeless people tend to be on their feet all day, they get problems in that department. We’ve also had nurses coming in to check their health.”

Tents are also provided, but “we get criticised for that,” Mr Ball admitted.

“There are a lot more homeless out there than people realize because they’re sleeping in tents away from the town centre, instead of shop doorways.”

After their hot meal, visitors are handed out packs containing water, crisps, a chocolate bar and sandwiches for the following morning.

“We do a roast dinner sometimes and the guys are just blown away by that,” said Mr Ball.

The volunteers also provide a listening ear to hear accounts of the hardships their visitors have suffered on the streets. “One lovely guy called Ricky was beaten up on the streets and was an absolute wreck after that,” said Mrs Smith. “Another guy, Julian, died two weeks ago – he was vulnerable. The rumour is he was beaten up and died shortly after.”

But there are also many heartwarming stories of people who have got themselves off the streets, and then return to the soup kitchen to pitch in as volunteers.

“People start with nothing, so we helped them to get donations of toasters, kettles and TVs,” Mrs Smith said. “But the problem is there are still a lot more people coming onto the streets than there are people coming off.”

Gill Garwood, who is chief executive of Southend homeless charity Harp, said: “It is comforting to know that so many people in Southend care about those that have fallen on hard times.

“One Love and other soup kitchens in Southend provide a listening ear as well as a vital food service which complements our services.

“When communities pull together to tackle a problem such as homelessness the impact is much greater.”