M&S Harpenden

Community led charity with a focus on social cohesion. Providing food aid to 600 people every week, baby items, educational intervention, free sport activities for youth and financial support for disadvantaged families across St Albans, London Colney, Hatfield and Welwyn Garden City. SACP holds a food hygiene rating of 5 at our unit with fridges/freezers/storage space in AL3 6EN. We have 50+ volunteers who between them hold food handling/hygiene certificates and are DBS checked. Food parcels are packed at the unit and delivered to doorsteps where needed or ppl collect from the unit. The service is free of charge and all volunteers are unpaid. We support 600ppl a week with fresh produce boxes. Referrals are made by other local organisations and authorities including schools, health visitors, family/social workers, Refugee Council, St Albans Old People’s Trust, Druglink, Citizen’s Advice Bureau, residents’ associations and more. Read more about our work in the press here: https://www.hertsad.co.uk/news/can-you-help-food-parcels-fundraiser-6903930 https://www.hertsad.co.uk/things-to-do/abbey-theatre-helps-sopwell-foodbank-6913492 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-56029947 We are in particular need of fresh produce including eggs/milk/fruit/vegetables.

We are a newly established Community Interest Company (CIC) based in St Albans, dedicated to supporting vulnerable individuals and families in our local area. Our mission is to bridge the gap in access to essential resources—starting with food support for those facing hardship. Our first initiative focuses on collecting surplus food from local supermarkets and distributing it directly to individuals and families in need. Many of the people we support are unable to access traditional food banks due to barriers such as limited transport, mobility issues, or personal circumstances. By offering same-day distribution—without the need for storage—we provide immediate and fresh relief while also reducing food waste. If donations are received daily, we will operate daily to match the need. All food is distributed completely free of charge. In recent weeks, through outreach and conversations with residents and local contacts, we have identified a significant number of families struggling to access existing services. We aim to fill that gap by offering accessible, responsive, and dignified support. Service users are identified via community outreach, word of mouth, and self-referral. As we grow, we hope to work with schools, health visitors, and local partners to reach those who may not be visible through traditional support networks. We are seeking support from Neighbourly in the form of surplus food collections. This will enable us to directly support families and individuals experiencing food insecurity, while also helping to reduce waste and strengthen our community impact. This is our first branch of support, but our team brings valuable experience from working with other charities and community projects. We are committed to collaboration and will continue to work alongside local and national organisations as our CIC develops. Our long-term vision is to grow beyond food support and address broader needs in the St Albans community. Planned future initiatives include: A community garden – providing access to fresh produce, promoting sustainable living, and creating a welcoming green space for residents to learn and connect. Youth-focused programmes – including sports-based classes and mentoring schemes that support mental and physical wellbeing, promote positive choices, and help young people build confidence and skills. All of our work is carried out in loving memory of a close family friend whose life embodied compassion, kindness, and community spirit. Their legacy inspires our commitment to serve, uplift, and build stronger local connections. We believe that community is built through connection, compassion, and action—and we are determined to deliver meaningful, inclusive support where it is needed most.

We at 'Meeting Needs' try to meet the needs of those who are in our community on a weekly basis who struggle financially. We do this by making up food parcels and boxes, and then have these delivered to those in our surrounding areas.. What premises does your project operate from? We do not operate from any premises as we do not store or retain food. All food are delivered on the day, or night that it is collected from the stores due to their "used by date". Our policy is straight from the store, straight to our recipients homes as we conduct a delivery service from store straight to homes. This ensures no one is hampered by having to travel to access the food. Our ethos is to eradicate all barriers that inhibits individuals from accessing food and that includes travel. We also eliminate the need to carry heavy bags of food back to their homes. Our motto is to provide a streamline service that enables our recipients to have an easier way of receiving food which greatly aids our more challenged individuals like the elderly and disabled. All of our collections are given to shelters, refuges and hostels and private homes. Other parties that benefit from us are single parent families, homeless, low income workers, as well as individuals who are on benefits. The elderly and the disabled and individuals who are in care homes who enjoy receiving our cakes, breads, and flowers. The users are identified by the need that they show and divulge to us, and the difficulties and challenges that they face in accessing food. We also supply clothing, household items which are sourced from other Charity organisations. Has there been local press or similar that demonstrates your organisation's work in the local community? We do not advertise the work that we do as a respect to the individuals that we serve as some of our recipients are classed as 'vulnerable' ie DV victims.