One Roof has become a regular fixture at Old Diorama Arts Centre (ODAC) through the rollout of its weekly programme this year. To launch the programme’s second year, titled Bricks and Mortar, we’re taking over ODAC’s top floor for two full weeks, from 19–30 January!
If you have lived experience of homelessness in any form—including, but not limited to, rough sleeping, temporary accommodation, living at risk of violence, or sofa surfing—stay tuned. We’ll soon announce the full line-up of workshops, mini-projects, performances, and opportunities to share your creative work.
This year’s programme is all about participatory arts for people with lived experience of homelessness in London, offering a safe space to create, perform, and connect with other artists.
ONE ROOF
ONE ROOF FESTIVAL 2026
This year’s festival, titled Bricks and Mortar, was all about bringing our skill sets, perspectives and ideas together to create work collaboratively.
One Roof, Old Diorama Arts Centre's programme for artists with lived experience of homelessness, held its two‑week festival from 19th to 30th January, running Mondays to Fridays. The programme offered a rich mix of arts workshops interwoven with mental health and wellbeing sessions, alongside an open studio. For the first time, we also introduced a dedicated project space, where we were able to research and develop two projects that will shape our year‑round weekly programme.
In the first week, we explored arts as activism, working with the stimulus word “unspoken”. In the second week, we shifted our focus to art for art’s sake, guided by the word “unknown”.
This year’s festival featured more theatre and storytelling‑based workshops than ever before, and created more opportunities for multi‑art‑form collaboration. Looking back, it felt like a year where the programme expanded in ambition, depth and creative possibility, and where the spirit of collective making truly came into its own.
To view the full festival gallery, documenting the workshops, project spaces, Jam Night, and all the art that was created, find it here.
If you have any questions about the festival or attending our weekly programme, drop us an email at oneroof@olddiorama.com, and our team will get back to you.
With thanks to The Linbury Trust, John Laing, The Tedworth Charitable Trust and our other generous donors.
