Sodexo

We are a seven day drop-in support centre running form 6-8pm Monday to Friday and 5-7pm Saturday and Sunday. As we are run entirely by donations and volunteers any support we receive will be greatly appreciated by so many in so many ways. Coffee4Craig provides vital support for Manchester’s homeless and people in crisis. Each evening we operate an out of hours’ drop-in service in the heart of Manchester city centre. We offer hot food, showers, food parcels, medical support and mental health crisis intervention. It will enable us to provide more food parcels to the ever increasing number of families in need. Food parcels are provided on a non-judgemental basis and we aim to provide balanced meals for several days. We have close links with other like-minded organisations in the area and we support each other in various ways. The bigger the support network for the homeless in the north west the more chance we have of helping. Donations may also enable us to venture into new projects and open other doors. We are keen to develop education packages to take into schools and this will be developed as we grow with the support of our volunteers. We want to show children, as well as adults, that it is ok to help the homeless.

The foodshed started several years ago as a result of various people and referrals from charities for people who were struggling or in need. These people started coming to our attention through the CAP centre we also run where we work with people to get out of debt, YMCA space who were using our office space and other referrals from Social Services, CAB and other people in the community. Because of how we are set up, we found people started to access us quite quickly. We are able to spend time getting to know people who are often quite isolated, homeless and in difficult situations. As a result of the support we have been able to give, we have seen many people come into various community groups, become volunteers themselves and start the journey out of poverty and in some cases into employment and becoming debt free. We give away hundreds of bags of food every month to people in Stevenage. However, finding a consistent and reliable source of food donations can be sometimes challenging. We also have a clothing bank and a toy bank where we give away brand new clothes to those who are homeless and in need. We work closely with people to navigate their way out of poverty and into employment, sometimes teams of volunteers can take part in projects meeting the needs of people and communities around us spreading kindness and compassion.

Sufra is a charity in North West London that prevents hunger, fights poverty and builds community. With the help of our volunteers and partners, we coordinate a network of food banks, kitchens, a community shop and café. These act as a gateway for guests to access more holistic support – including welfare advice, asylum support and our award-winning community garden. We aim to work with our guests to find solutions to their challenges together, whilst campaigning against the causes of hunger and poverty.