Lambeth Council recently created a Food Poverty and Insecurity Action Plan. They have identified certain sections of the population who are significantly more at risk of food insecurity that others, these are:
• Low-income households
• Black and minority ethnic groups
• Men living alone
• The homeless
• People suffering from mental health issues
• Frail and poor older people
• People with disabilities
The Lunch club will be aimed towards these sections of society, those in poverty or financial hardship, who struggle to provide for themselves, or their families, with nutritious meals, such as:
• Those who don’t have access to cooking facilities or who can’t afford cooked meals
• Those who rely on free school meals and then struggle during school holidays
• Those who, during the winter months, may be faced with choosing between feeding themselves or heating their home
• Those who don’t qualify for state benefits, such as Universal Credit
• Those who don’t have the skills or the ability to cook for themselves and can’t afford to eat out
The Lunch club will provide hot, freshly cooked lunches to vulnerable people to help them eat at least one nutritious meal a day and to allow them to socialise in a friendly and welcoming environment that will help some with social isolation and loneliness.
The Lunch Club will provide a hot meal service, offering a nutritious and balanced menu of main course, pudding, snacks and hot drinks, including vegetarian options. There will be space for people to sit down to eat but we will also offer a takeaway service. The charity will rely on the local Streatham retail community such as supermarkets, stores, restaurants, cafes, bars and pubs for donations of food. The aim is to cook with the food waste that these businesses create on a daily basis but which will be the life blood of the charity. The lunch club will also provide a safe, caring and welcoming environment where beneficiaries can socialise and form new friendships, helping to alleviate loneliness and social isolation.
