Cultural Launderette

Why we do it

One of the main things people tend to hold against the homeless is that they smell bad and their clothes are dirty. But people rarely stop to think that the homeless simply have nowhere to wash their clothes. Not every launderette will let a homeless person in and, besides, one needs to pay for it. But homeless people may not have enough money because they cannot find a job while they look this way. It becomes a vicious circle. Furthermore, the smell draws negative attention to them and as a result they may end up suffering not just psychologically but also physically. Helping people clean themselves is one of the first steps to help them get off the street. 

How it works

The Cultural Launderette is a joint project run by Nochlezhka and Prachka.Com, a chain of self-service launderettes. We launched it on 22 November 2016, and this is the first free launderette for the homeless in Russia.

It is equipped with 8 washing machines and 8 tumble driers with a capacity of 5 kg each as well as one washing machine for bulky objects for up to 9 kg.