The first proper community larder was on 9 October. We got all the food set up, we practice our roles, and we got our T shirts!
About 15 people showed up, and about 8 signed up the first week – fewer than we had hoped for, but a lot more than zero! People seemed delighted with the amount and quantity of food that they were getting. We told everyone to tell their friends…
Our first meeting about a Leys community larder was on 11 September 2019. The aim was to gauge if there was interest in the idea, and possibly to recruit volunteers. About 25 people showed up to the first meeting and half a dozen possible volunteers emerged.
From then on things moved very quickly.
We had a volunteer induction on 25 September, led by Claire Hughes. The volunteers learned about how Sofea operates, where the food comes from, what kind of food would be provided etc. We agreed that the volunteers would get red T shirts with logos. Volunteers get a free membership.
The next week we had a ‘mock larder’. Sofea brought some food, we learned how to set it up on the tables and how to keep it off the ground; how to get people signed up; how to deal with some possible problems… and possible future larder members were invited to visit the mock larder and sign up.
So I’m starting this blog a bit late in the day, four weeks into the Leys community larder becoming operational, but I wanted to record how the Leys larder got set up.
I contacted FareShare in summer 2019 with the intention of buying more food from FareShare for the Leys community fridge. Claire Hughes from Sofea (the apprentice training arm of FareShare) contacted me back, suggesting that we might want to set up a community larder instead. If we supplied a venue and volunteers, Sofea would supply everything else: food, admin, the works.
Between us, we visited the Didcot larder – the first in the country – twice in July. We were very impressed by it, and made a little video about it:
Basically it’s a food club. People pay £8.66 per month direct debit (£17.32 for a family membership), and in return they get access to a cafe, children’s play area, a couple of annual events… and up to 10 (20 for families) items of non-perishables per week, plus free fruit and vegetables. The food comes from FareShare, who in turn get it as surplus food from wholesalers. The aim is to reduce food waste, build some community spirit, and get food to peole who can use it. Perfect for Blackbird Leys.
Three little fridge stories.
As Colin and Sally were checking the fridge today, a couple came to them and thanked them profusely. They had only recently discovered the fridge, were struggling with paying the rent, and they said that they fridge is a lifesaver.
A woman who had used the ‘in need’ shelving in the past brought a carrier bag of tins and biscuits to Rev. Clare to put in the fridge, as a thank you.
Three hours ago I picked up 60 bags of carrots (30kg) from Tesco, rammed them into the fridge, and wrote a short Facebook post – not even including a photo – about it. I’ve just checked the fridge and half of those carrots have gone to good homes:
Thank you very much to Good Food Oxford for almost £400, a private donation of £250, and £1000 from the Doris Field charitable fund. Together, they will allow us to buy FareShare food for the Leys community fridge.
FareShare pick up surplus food from wholesalers, unpack and pack it at their regional depots, and deliver it to their recipients. They charge a bit under £100 per month to pay for their depot and transport. In return, we will get 50kg of food per week delivered to the community fridge.
We are in the process of figuring out how best to dispense that food, i.e. whether directly through the fridge, or whether to set up a membership-based system where people can buy bags of FareShare food at discounted rates. Watch this space.
But in the meanwhile, thank you again to the donors that are allowing this to take place.
Thank you to Rowse (and the magnificent Naomi in high vis) for a very full car of delicious, in date Italian cakes. They all went to the Didcot and Abingdon food banks. There were some hairy moments at the roundabouts when the cakes went flying from the back to the front, but all’s well etc.
The Leys community fridge started operations on 27 November. The grand launch is at 10am on Thur 6 December. Do come along!
Blackbird Leys community centre
Blackbird Leys Road, OX4 6HW
… in the Blackbird Leys community centre, which will be open Mon & Fri 9-3, and Tue/Wed/Thur 9-4. Estimated start date is 1 Dec. Hurrah!
Very exciting. This will be the next-nearest community fridge to ours. Food for Charities helped with paperwork, information about food sources etc.
Food for Charities 