Sainsbury's Cowley

Abingdon Muslims is a registered faith-based charity supporting individuals and families across Abingdon and surrounding villages through community activities, volunteering and practical assistance. Guided by Islamic values of compassion, generosity and service, we support people experiencing hardship regardless of religion, ethnicity or background. Our activities benefit both our congregation and the wider local community. We aim to strengthen community connections, promote inclusion and provide practical support to households facing financial difficulties. Food Redistribution and Community Support Our volunteers collect surplus food from supermarkets and retailers and redistribute it to local individuals and families experiencing food insecurity. We support households facing financial hardship, including low-income families, single-parent households, older residents and families struggling with rising living costs. Friday prayer gatherings provide an established distribution point, but our food-sharing activities extend throughout the week and are open to people of all faiths and backgrounds. Our volunteers also work with other community groups and charitable organisations to ensure that surplus food reaches households beyond our immediate congregation. By redistributing good-quality surplus food, we help families manage everyday costs while preventing unnecessary food waste. Our Volunteers and Activities Our charity is overseen by five trustees and supported by more than ten active volunteers. Our volunteers coordinate regular supermarket collections, transport and distribute food, and support community activities. Alongside food redistribution, we organise congregational prayers, Eid celebrations, children's educational activities, social gatherings and community outreach events. We aim to build positive relationships with local organisations and strengthen community cohesion. How Neighbourly Can Help Our main priority is securing regular surplus food collection opportunities from supermarkets, retailers and local businesses. Our experienced volunteers can collect and redistribute suitable food throughout the week, including evenings and weekends. Regular collections would help us: - Provide reliable food support to local families experiencing hardship. - Reach more households across Abingdon and surrounding villages. - Reduce unnecessary food waste. - Make effective use of our established volunteer network. - Collaborate with retailers, charities and community organisations. We welcome opportunities to work with local businesses and other charities to ensure that surplus food reaches people who can benefit from it. Our Commitment Our aim is to build a caring, inclusive and sustainable community where neighbours support one another, surplus food is put to good use, and everyone experiencing hardship is treated with dignity and respect.

Food is supplied to us free by supermarkets and wholesalers and we redistribute to charities at no cost. This helps reduce food waste in the local area – one of our main aims The food is then distributed free of charge to other local charities who provide food for their clients This ensures that the food gets to the right people, and helps us to achieve our second aim of reducing food poverty It also helps these charities to provide much needed additional support in other areas by reducing their food costs Most of our operations are carried out by volunteers, helping us to provide around £10 of food for every £1 donated We believe that this is the most effective mode of operation and would happily provide advice for other new start-up food hubs wishing to follow our lead

Oxford Mutual Aid is a volunteer led organisation network. Formed in response to covid-19, our core focus is helping those who, for whatever reason, struggle to access help through existing agencies. We work with a range of charities, local government, and other community groups to get help to those who need it. Mutual Aid is about solidarity rather than charity - though we work alongside many wonderful charities. Many of our volunteers also receive aid through the organisation, and we work hard to reduce the stigma around asking for support. If we can safely offer people assistance, we do so, and without any means testing. We are currently supporting around 250 households per week. We also deliver around 700 reheatable meals to people who do not have access to cooking facilities, to food insecure families in and around oxford as well as to people who are homeless. We also provide support to existing organisations including Oxford Gatehouse, Oxford Community Action, Oxford Homeless Movement, Refugee Resource, African Families in the UK and others. We have also produced over 500 washable masks for key workers and care homes, as well as providing over 1500 meals to NHS workers.