A SCHEME to deliver cook-at-home packs to families – which was delayed by Covid restrictions – could begin soon if £1,000 grant is approved.
Town councillors awarded the funds to Abraham’s Kitchen which aims to send monthly packages to 50 recipients.
It had been due to start in April 2020, with the aim of providing free community lunches during the school holidays, but due to lockdown rules had to be transformed into a cook-at-home scheme.
Organisers say, “Abraham’s Kitchen (which is part of the Laverton Institute Trust) was due to open its doors in April 2020, to bring the community together for a free and delicious lunch during the school holidays. Well, that was before the lockdown restrictions.
“Now, Abraham’s Kitchen has been transformed into our ‘Cook at Home’ edition.
Why is this project
so important?
“Abraham’s Kitchen was originally started to provide hot meals during the school holidays, when families are under extra financial pressures.
“Child poverty is 10% higher in Westbury than the national average. That is more than 250 children that live below the poverty line and regularly go without hot meals.
“The current pandemic has only exacerbated this problem, with families ineligible for free school meals and now struggling for work, added to the growing list of vulnerable people within our community that require urgent help.
“During the lockdown restrictions, Westbury’s schools have done an incredible job at feeding their students with regular hot meals. However, we are now receiving more requests from our partners in social care to help families with their food provisions.
“This has been coupled with the problem of food education.
“Through the distribution of our free food boxes, we have often been told “We have great, healthy ingredients, but don’t know what to do with them to make nutritious meals.” (Especially ones my kids will actually want to eat!)
“The initial remit for Abraham’s Kitchen also included working with a chef from Wiltshire College who would not only cook for us for free, but would promote free cooking skills courses available through the college.
“Coronavirus has prompted a more creative approach to making this happen and we will now provide an outreach service that includes recipes, food and encourages youth engagement and wellbeing that goes way beyond simply providing a box of food. The chef has developed the cook at home recipes and is still involved with the project.
How it works
“Working with the family support officers from local schools, Steve Hubbard, local area coordinator (Wiltshire Council), and the health centre social prescribing team, we have identified 50 families who would benefit from receiving one of our cook at home boxes. Each family will receive an ingredients box brimming with healthy produce delivered to their doors, with a nutritious, healthy recipe included in each one.
“The children will then be challenged to ‘Cook at Home’ for the rest of the family. We are looking at the possibility of a team of ‘special chefs’ to record videos to cook along to, as well encouraging the young people to share their experiences online.
“The first 50 food boxes are due to be distributed shortly. The cost of each food box is approximately £8 and will provide a meal for a family of 6.”
