Six new food stores are opening in Tower Hamlets to help tackle poverty and support people at risk.
The food pantries are being launched in cooperation with the charity Family Action, which provides access to groceries such as fresh fruit, vegetables, or healthy ready meals worth £20-£30, for a fee of £3.50 a week.
As well as groceries, members can get professional advice from the Tower Hamlets Community Advice Network regarding finances, as well as support with debt, benefits access, housing, welfare, employment and other areas.
Councillor Saied Ahmed, cabinet member for Resources and the Cost of Living, said: “A unique feature of the food store is that people will not only be able to access food on site, but they will have access to professionals to provide support on underlying root cause issues such as debt management, benefits issues and employment.”
Memberships usually last six months and the idea is to stabilise members’ financial and living situations, so they no longer need to rely on food support services.
Councillor Maium Talukdar, deputy mayor and cabinet member for Education, said: “We have already introduced several support packages worth more than £5m to help our most vulnerable residents, including an Energy Fund.”
“Our next step is to open food stores and support existing food banks to make sure no one goes hungry.”
Tower Hamlets is one of the most deprived London boroughs, with the highest levels of child poverty in the UK.
While the national average rate is 31 per cent, in Tower Hamlets 55.8 per cent of children live in low-income households.
The borough also has some of the highest levels of pensioner poverty – it is estimated that 44 per cent of elderly residents live in low-income households.
In response to the increasing levels of poverty and the cost-of-living crisis, Tower Hamlets Council has set aside around £100,000 to implement the project.
Councillor Ahmed said: “The pantries will also work with food distribution charities like the Felix Project to make sure families receive quality fresh fruit and vegetables while helping the planet by cutting down on waste.”
“Working with charity Family Action, the partnership will allow three pantries launched by the organisation last year to remain open, while a further three will be introduced this year.
“They join the programme’s pilot site, operated by charity Burdett FC in Mile End, to form a network of seven FOOD Stores with access spread across the borough in areas of need.”
In the next two and a half years, the food pantries in Tower Hamlets are expected to give access to £627,900 worth of food and to directly support 2,100 individuals, while aiding approximately 12,397 people, including service users and their households.
Pantry operators receive support from the council and from the food hub, however, they are advised to build relationships with local businesses and other organisations as a way to seize opportunities for food access.
David Holmes, CEO of Family Action, said: “Family Action is delighted to be working with the Tackling Poverty team in Tower Hamlets to deliver new food stores, ensuring more people across the borough have access to good quality food at a low cost.”
