As the bitterly cold winter sets in, diners visiting participating restaurants including Bistrotheque in Wadeson Street and Viajante in Cambridge Heath Road are asked to add �1 to their bill, as part of StreetSmart’s campaign to help the homeless.

The StreetSmart campaign provides much needed emergency funding to 88 homelessness charities across 18 cities, from Edinburgh to Brighton with the help of more than 500 restaurants. StreetSmart ensures the money raised by restaurants is reinvested locally so the money diners donate will benefit nearby charities, helping to shelter and feed the homeless during the cold winter months.

Chosen charities receive between �500 and �15,000, depending on the project to be funded. U-Turn based at Toynbee Hall in Commercial Street, Whitechapel, help women working in street prostitution in East London.

They run an outreach programme, meeting women on their own territory, providing unconditional and consistent support and slowly building up trust to use the services they need and to help them maintain positive changes over time. A StreetSmart grant will be used to help fund the outreach service.

Glenn Pougnet, the director of StreetSmart said: “Despite the recent economic downturn, StreetSmart has seen an increase in donations, proving that UK diners are still willing to give generously this time of year, when they know their money is being put to good use locally.”

StreetSmart raised �455,000 in 2009 and is now in its 13th year.

Every penny raised goes directly towards helping the homeless, as all administration costs are covered by StreetSmart’s sponsor, Deutsche Bank.