Council schemes to tackle food poverty in Mansfield have been shortlisted for a national award.
Since 2020, Mansfield District Council has been operating a series of FOOD (Food On Our Doorstep) clubs across the district.
It has also worked with Nottinghamshire County Council to provide food support for children during the school holidays as part of the Holiday Activity and Food Programme (HAF).
The council's efforts in these schemes have now been rewarded with a place in the final of best Community Engagement Scheme in the Municipal Journal Achievement Awards. The winner of the awards will be announced at a ceremony in London on 23 June.
It was after reports showing the number of families finding it hard to put food on the table increased four-fold during the COVID-19 pandemic that the council decided to act urgently to tackle food and fuel insecurity in the district.
David Evans, Head of Health and Communities at Mansfield District Council, said: "The council has been central to leading a collaborative approach to addressing food and fuel poverty in this area.
"Problem with food poverty came to the fore during the pandemic and has since been exacerbated by the cost of living crisis.
"The Bellamy estate in Mansfield was particularly badly hit, with many people unemployed or furloughed during the pandemic and the nearest supermarket a mile away."
Initially a Food Share scheme was set up on the estate in a community centre with donations from Warburtons, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Aldi.
It was supporting up to 60 residents referred each week and distributed nearly 500 bags of food before it evolved into a more sustainable model and became the first of six FOOD clubs in the district.
In 2022, these clubs, operated by the charity Family Action, provided affordable food for 6,756 residents. The clubs work with FareShare to acquire usable unsold food from wholesalers and suppliers which would be destined for landfill.
This enables the clubs to offer £12 to £15 of food for just £3.50 to anyone in need. No referral is needed which makes the scheme more accessible.
FOOD club members also benefit from wider support such as:
- Recipe packs and cookery demonstrations
- Brunch kits during the school holidays
- Seed and growing kits
- Cooking equipment such as microwaves, toasters, kettles and utensils.
- Opportunity to engage with support for domestic abuse and debt.
In addition, the clubs help its volunteers develop skills and undertake training and obtain qualifications to progress into employment opportunities.
As part of the county council's HAF programme, Mansfield District Council's nutrition team works collaboratively with local partners and national partner FareShare to ensure children and young people can enjoy a substantial meal on the activity days.
The team has helped adapt the way the HAF food is offered, making a change from working with off-site caterers providing hot ready meals or pack lunches, to cooking meals on site.
By cooking meals on site, the team is able to create healthy meals from scratch, often introducing young people to foods that they do not eat at home.
The children are involved in deciding what should be on the menus based on ingredients provided by FareShare and the options that offers.
The food is then cooked on site and presented in a buffet so the youngsters can plate it up themselves and try different things.
David Evans explained: "What we have found is that all kids eat more food throughout the programme, many coming back for seconds - and sometimes thirds!
"We have also found that the young people try a wider variety of foods due to the buffet style.
"These two schemes are among several that were introduced in Mansfield after the council partnered with national charity Feeding Britain in 2020 to set up the Feeding Mansfield Network.
"We are delighted that the schemes have been recognised as up there with the best in the MJ awards and I would like to thank all our partners for their invaluable contribution in ensuring their success."
The Feeding Mansfield Network is a collective of national, regional and local community and voluntary partners which drew up a cohesive approach to supporting vulnerable residents.
Other projects include a fuel bank to support residents in fuel poverty and a Crop Drop scheme, linking locally grown food on allotments to local FOOD Clubs and Food Share schemes.
Advice on dealing with the rising cost of living and food insecurity can be found on the council website (link opens in new window).