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articleindex followcenterhttps://www.communityfoundation.org.uk/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/HealthWorks-large.jpgcentermodule_group modules Array 1 The cookery sessions ran by HealthWorks taught adults and young people alike cookery skills they can use at home.
A Newcastle charity running pop-up kitchens, delivered community cooking sessions to over 300 people, thanks to a grant from the Dickon Trust Fund at the Community Foundation.
HealthWorks Newcastle applied for a grant to set-up six mobile training pop-up kitchen workstations, complete with microwaves, electric hobs, electric pans, utensils, and sundries. The aim was to reach people in food poverty, assisting them to learn skills to prepare and cook healthy meals on a budget. The sessions were delivered over seven weeks of the school summer holidays as part of ‘Best Summer Ever’ programme combatting holiday hunger for children.
The grant was awarded before the Covid pandemic began yet the group were able to tailor their cooking sessions by hosting them outdoors with social distance measures in place.
Julie Stephens, Senior Manager Health Promotion at HealthWorks said:
‘The pop-up kitchen equipment allowed us to do this in a safe way. Each family had their own ‘station’ ensuring there was no cross contamination of equipment or ingredients. The families could have fun and enjoy the session knowing only they had used the equipment.’
Julie explained that the grant had allowed them to reach more families and offer greater selection of options to participants:
‘If we had not been granted the money from the Dickon Trust Fund we would not have been able to deliver to as many families during the summer. The range of equipment in the pop-up kitchen packs was also vital, as they allowed us to complete sessions with a variety of different recipes in many different locations.’
Su Legg, Senior Fund Advisor at the Community Foundation added:
‘This project funded by the Community Foundation has clearly exceeded expectations and made a huge difference to HealthWorks’ ability to connect with new and existing service users during a very challenging time.
‘The versatility of the equipment means it will have lasting benefit, allowing HealthWorks to continue to support others for the foreseeable future’.
The Dickon Trust Fund was originally established in 1986 and set-up as an endowment fund at the Community Foundation in 2014. The fund primarily supports young people, carers and smaller charitable projects across the North East.
For more information about funding opportunities at the Community Foundation visit www.communityfoundation.org.uk/apply
To learn more about HealthWorks, you can visit their website here: https://www.healthworksnewcastle.org.uk