Lidl Alness

Home-Start is a local charity that has worked to support disadvantaged children and families in Ross-Shire for more than 30 years. Each year we work with around 200 families and about 400 children. Our work is quite unique and includes a range of programmes to train and support our staff and volunteers to work directly with disabled and disadvantaged children, and their parents to help build the behaviours, understanding and skills the children need to be ready to grow into responsible adults and to make the very most of the opportunities that life presents them with. Our aim is to ensure that every child has the best possible start in life. Our project specifically targets the most disadvantaged and isolated families in our community, including families that do not readily engage with their children’s early needs because they lack confidence or feel alienated from other public services. We spend time with families and provide the books, toys and resources needed to support the family's specific needs, and we show the family how to address and cope with behavioural problems, chaotic lifestyles, poor health or disability, and can help to develop communication skills where English is perhaps not the family's first language.

Invergordon Food Larder is a part of Invergordon Community Hub and was set up to help people who are struggling due to the cost of living crisis and to ensure they aren't having to choose between heating their homes and eating, with an additional purpose of minimising food waste. We are a charitable organisation who are in the process of obtaining full charity status, to assist us in our goal of helping the people of Invergordon. We look to offer a judgement free zone where people can collect food and get information about additional support within the local area. FAQs What premises does your project operate from? We operate from 94b High Street, Invergordon, IV18 0DL How do you identify service users and their needs? We realise that, in this cost of living crisis, anybody can struggle, irrelevant of employment status. That is why we enable our service users to come to us. Our service is advertised on Facebook and within the local area. When members come to us, we do have a private space where they can talk to us if they wish to. The main information we ask is the number of family members. This allows us to identify the needs, understand the situation and deposit the food in a fair way amongst our service users. Are there any other services provided by your organisation other than food support? Currently, our main service is the Food Larder. We have previously had the Citizen’s Advice Bureau attend, so people can get additional advice, and in the future we are looking to run a group for Additional Support Needs and other community groups, on the days the Food Larder isn’t operating. We are registered with Blythswood and are able to make referrals to them for people who need additional support. Is there a charge for the service(s) provided by your organisation? There is no charge for our Food Larder Service. All our funding is sought by grants, which covers the running costs and the purchase of tinned items as and when required. Do you currently collect surplus food from any other retailers? In the past we had received donations from the Co-Op and we have had rare donations from Asda and Morrison. However, we are outside of the ASDA distribution area, Morrisons prefer to give their produce to other places and the Co-Op claim our chair and secretary are not local enough, despite us being in the area for the last six years, to do anything for the community. Has there been local press or similar that demonstrates your organisation's work in the local community? We have previously had local press and whoever donates to us goes on our weekly advertisements. Would it be possible to provide photographs of work that your organisation does in the local community? In order to protect the privacy and dignity of our service users, we do not take photographs. However, we do take pictures of the Food Larder tables with the food ready for distribution and have taken pictures of an event that was held by us in the local area.

We are a community ran foodbank which works solely on the help of the community for donations of any food they don’t need or anything that can help, we cover most of the highlands and have a no restrictions motto unlike registered foodbanks that can only give a certain amount In a certain period of time we will not refuse anyone any help at anytime, we feel passionately about what we do and we feel like there is no reason ever that anyone should go without food this day in age a little help makes a massive ripple of kindness, always help where you can and when you can, I have personally been in the position of hunger myself and if I can stop it happening to just one person or more then my aim of this project is worthwhile.