Lidl Beccles Common Lane North

At The Limes we have opened a Community Fridge and food bank for the school, and wider, community. We are hoping for regular donation to support our initiative and keep this open for the community. What type of premises do you use for food storage and distribution? A large kitchen/ pantry space in a separate building on our premises. How do you identify recipients for your food distribution service? Staff direct families verbally to use the service. In addition, given the locality we benefit from word of mouth in the community. Do you offer any additional services alongside food distribution? At various points of the year, we also offer: toys, clothing and advertise FISH in the locality. Is there a cost associated with your food distribution service? There is a cost of travel and staffing to us. There is no cost passed on to service users. Do you currently collect surplus food from other retailers or sources? None. Can you share any local press coverage or similar that showcases your food distribution efforts? None, our families tend to prefer our more discreet yet normalised approach, as opposed to media coverage. While we used social media in the early days to promote our donations, we now open on regular slots and are used by the community - therefore, we do not post on social media.

During the first three weeks of Covid-19 lockdown more than 5,300 people contacted the ‘Home but not Alone’ East Suffolk telephone support line. More than 50% of the calls were for help with shopping because the caller did not have access to online shopping. Between April and the end of June more than 800 visits were made by volunteers in the Kirkley area to deliver shopping to more than 50 households unable to access online food shopping. In response to the needs of Kirkley community Kirkley Pantry opened on Tuesday 1st December 2020 at 10am in Kirkley Church Hall, St Peter’s Road, Lowestoft. We are open on Tuesdays from 10.00 -12.30 and 17.00-18.00. Kirkley Pantry is not a Food Bank, there are no vouchers and no referral system. Anyone who lives within the parish of Kirkley, who has found after paying all the household bills there is very little left over for food, can become a member of Kirkley Pantry. It is a membership scheme where for £4 each week members can shop at the Pantry and select at least 10 items of their own choosing from a wide selection of high quality products including tinned and ambient groceries and chilled, frozen and fresh food. The value of these items can be approximately £20. We also offer free items each week, subject to availability, which may include personal hygiene items, bread and cakes, fruit and vegetables and eggs. Shopping at the local Pantry means people can bring down their food shopping bills, and access good food, whilst freeing up more money for other essentials and enabling tight budgets to stretch a little further. Members of Kirkley Pantry can also volunteer, earning work experience credits and increasing skills. Kirkley Pantry is a member of Lowestoft Food Forum which works with FareShare, Neighbourly, East Suffolk Council and Lowestoft Town Council. The aim of the forum is to reduce food poverty and food inequality and reduce the amount of food finishing up in landfill sites. We purchase food weekly from Fareshare and also collect food from several local supermarkets If you are interested in becoming a member of Kirkley Pantry, or are interested in volunteering, please call 01502 589112 or email kirkleypantry@gmail.com If you are interested in volunteering with the Pantry here are some examples of how you can help: • Taking responsibility for food deliveries • Unpacking and putting food onto shelving/fridge/freezer • General cleaning • Greeting members and guiding them through the Pantry shopping experience • Stock rotation and management • Administration roles • IT roles

We serve a no strings attached meal for the homeless and marginalised in society. Our friendly drop in meal takes place on Tuesdays from 10am until 12noon. During the meal, we offer food parcels and clothing vouchers to anyone in need. We look to our Christian values, helping those who need help as Christ would have done, and has done for us. We normally have between 30-50 members sharing a meal with us at our Tuesday sessions, It is a drop in service, so members come at any time between 10-12, and stay for as long as they like.