The Co-operative Food - Southbourne, Main Road

Tuppenny Barn Education is a food focused, environmental charity which offers children of all ages from Hampshire and West Sussex the chance to experience first-hand growing, picking and cooking fresh produce, forging a positive relationship with healthy eating habits. The children also learn the importance of sustainability and valuing the natural world through organic growing practice and observations of various natural habitats on the site including a pond, an insect hotel and bee hives. In particular, children from areas of high deprivation, those with special educational needs and disabilities are supported. We aim to welcome 2000 children/year through school visits and holiday and after school courses. The charity also runs a social and therapeutic horticultural programme, Nurture in Nature, supporting vulnerable adults with mild to moderate mental health issues or social isolation to improve mental and physical well being through growing and harvesting. The charity's third goal is to support our local community. Over the first months of Covid 19 we set up a Food Hardship Fund to support local families in food poverty. We delivered weekly food boxes containing fresh organic produce and locally cooked meals. A number of these local families had young carers at home so following on from this we have started a Wellbeing Group in conjunction with our local secondary school. This programme welcomes vulnerable children on site to learn about growing, harvesting and cooking crops. Art work and creative projects give the children to learn outdoors and have fun. Another project which supports members of our local community is our City and Guilds Level 1 Horticulture qualification for vulnerable adults. Working with other local charities such as Stone Pillow and our local social prescribers. All our work is supported by a group of 84 plus local volunteers. These volunteers support us through gardening, cooking the produce from our organic small holding, helping the education team and helping at events. In total Tuppenny Barn Education benefits 2700 children and adults in West Sussex and Hampshire.