B&Q Thornbury Road

We provide a base for the community to meet and provide support and local resources. We deliver courses and activities that have been requested by the local users in conjunction with our many partnerships. Key services at the centre are our free Advice service and our Nursery which predominantly caters for children on 15 and 30 hours schemes. Activities running from the community centre at present range from yoga to read & write for beginners, kids clubs to teaching 55+ about tablets, smart phones and laptops. The community centre is also a link to affordable clothes, toys and food. This is offered through our seconds shack and our toy table, both always full of donations from people locally giving back. We accept food donations from Marks & Spencer, Tesco, Asda, Aldi, Innchurches and Fairshare. These donations go towards preparing free food for our kids group, free food on Fridays scheme and any persons requiring a meal through the meal referred from Advice or our local Foodbank.

Established over 150 years ago and originally called The Institute for the deaf and dumb we still occupy the same building but our name has changed over the years to reflect society's changing attitudes. We support D/deaf and hard of hearing people in accessing information, training and recreational activities We also provide opportunity for interaction between D/deaf and hearing people by supporting the learning of BSL (British Sign Language) either through formal or informal courses . Our listed building is also home to a vibrant mix of ethnicities, faiths and cultures. Our "family" at Hallfield Road includes BIASAN supporting refugees and asylum seekers, an NHS mental health wellbeing support group,, two groups supporting homeless and vulnerable people with a weekly hot meal, a craft group for hard of hearing/hearing and profoundly D/deaf people, 2 church groups and a weekly luncheon club for profoundly D/deaf elderly people and in early 2025 we look forward to welcoming a new group who will be supporting people with ADHD into our ever growing "family" In addition to the 500 + people who already use our facilities every week we also support other local community organisations and groups with any surplus food, clothes or furniture we may have sourced so our outreach within our community does extend much farther than just our immediate community centre Our building is based in a very deprived area of the city and there is a continually transient population as people arrive in the city and are then relocated elsewhere Any food we get is quickly distributed to those who need it but we also have a community pantry set up for emergencies as many people who are now needing help have never been in this situation before and often do not know where to go for help. We have a community fridge and several freezers which are in situ to enable us to take advantage of any offers of surplus frozen food. We also subscribe to a weekly ambient and fortnightly frozen food delivery from Fareshare. These deliveries always include items such as dairy , fruit and vegetables and not only subsidises the food we have donated by local supermarkets via Neighbourly but enables us to offer a variety of healthy food choices to people The people we support have a wide variety of traditional staple diets - for some families chapatti flour and oil are what is needed, for others pasta or rice enables them to make large nourishing meals they know their families will eat. From experience we know people prefer to choose foods they know they will use rather than be given a prefilled bag. This means less waste and more meals from the donations we receive A big THANK YOU to all who continue to support us in the work we do

Bradford New Church Community Project originally set up during covid to help the most vulnerable have access to food. Our main aim is to reduce waste going to landfill unnecessarily, making sure those who are hungry are fed and warm whilst we are open, along with offering local people support with isolation, mental health and poverty Available daily is surplus foods, donated clothes, toys, household items, in all cases it’s suggested a donation of 10/20p item or £2/£3 per bag (in a pay as you feel manner) from a bunch of flowers to prams, toys to kettles, microwaves, shoes, coats, wellies etc if it’s in good condition we encourage regift, reuse and upcycle, helping people feel like they are contributing at an affordable amount rather than living on handouts We try promote there is a suggested amount even though it’s very low, we are then able to say it’s donation or free for those who cannot afford it but need it, in turn it limits people taking large amounts not needed, people can also donate more if they choose to and can afford it Volunteers (24 volunteers speaking 8 different languages help on various days) collect from stores at varying times using thermo/cardboard boxes dependant on types of foods given, within an hour all foods sorted into fridges, chest freezer or cupboards dependent on their types/labels, all foods are given out daily, inedible foods are cut up and composted, leftover foods are collected daily by a local farm given as chicken/pig feeds Available daily is, free drinks/toast/cereal/make their own meal using kettle, toaster, microwave or toastie maker provided, all people are welcome to sit/chat for as long as we are open each day no drink or food limits if it’s needed, they can have it Running at present free is Benefit Advice, Family Early Help, Evening Community Meal, Gardening club, Home Ed, BSL signing, Adult craft, Christmas Day dinner, Monthly day trips, Try The Train, Cook n Eat, Playgroup, Toy Appeal Partnership links offering weekly support - MIND, CFT Trust, CAB, Baby Bank, School uniform bank, Foodbank, local schools, Council, Skills House The surplus foods is a link into support, we are not a shop, we are a community group offering a whole host of support to help people feel part of society, offering volunteering/groups to lift people’s wellbeing, letting them show support whichever they can give it, in time; ideas; or money, any is enough There are around 500-700 people attending each month for their own reasons, this has become a valued life line for many people locally, mostly advertised by word of mouth All monies raised go towards costs of running fridges, freezers, heating, tea, coffee, sugar, bread, milk, volunteer travel costs All this starts from being able to offer surplus foods, giving people a reason to build the courage to walk through the door for the first time, leading to making friendships, creating community links, knowing support is available, in a safe, warm and non-judgemental environment