Newark Foodbank chosen to benefit from Co-op Local Community Fund

Newark Foodbank has been chosen as one of the charities to receive money from a community cause.

The Co-op Local Community Fund has selected the foodbank, among many other causes across the UK, to benefit when customers buy Co-op-branded products and services.

Newark Foodbank will use the money raised for its social supermarket project and a hub for other local charities to use with them in Newark town centre.

“This will involve renting premises suitable for providing people with somewhere to go to get fresh and store-cupboard items,” said Newark Foodbank in its submission to Co-op.

“As well as using the project space for a social supermarket two to three times per week, the office and other spaces can be used by local charities as meeting, admin, counselling and teaching spaces.”

For the to-be-launched social supermarket, the red food voucher system will be dropped and replaced with a membership card on the first visit.

Stephen Charnock, chairman of trustees at Newark and Tuxford Foodbank, previously said the supermarket, along with the foodbank, would help ensure no one in Newark and Sherwood went hungry.

He said: “With the social supermarket, we hope it will take away any stigma that comes with using a foodbank — people will contribute to the cost of their items as well as the running costs.”

From April 2020 to March 2021, Newark Foodbank, based at Barnbygate Methodist Church, gave three days of emergency food relief to 2,907 clients, despite having to adapt to the challenges of the pandemic.

A total of 48 volunteers gave up more than 5,500 hours of their time.

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