THREE community larders have been set up to support communities in Fordingbridge, Ringwood and Three Legged Cross.
The latest one in Fordingbridge was launched on Good Friday.
What are community larders?
FareShare, run by volunteers, receives food from supermarkets – good food that would otherwise go to waste - with the aim of helping people to budget and providing fresh food that may be more difficult to afford.
A community larder has been started in Fordingbridge
How does it work
People purchase weekly membership for a sum of up to £5 and receive a parcel of food to a value in excess of the cost of membership.
The memberships are based on the size of the household:
- £2.50 a week - a single person can receive 10 items including some fruit and vegetables
- £3.50 a week - a 2 person family can receive 15 items including some fruit and vegetables.
- £5 a week - a family (more than 2 people) can receive up to 25 items including some fruit and vegetables, dependent on stock level
- A typical food bag can include pasta, rice, coffee, tea bags, tinned meats, tinned fish, tinned desserts, soups, along with fresh fruit and vegetables.
How to apply
For an application form email FSSouthernCentral@fareshare.org.uk, pick up a paper copy from your local organisation. Proof of address/ID is needed to apply.
Community larder locations
Ringwood Health and Leisure Centre car park from 1.30pm to 3pm on Friday
All Saints Church in Three Legged Cross from 9.30am to 11am on Monday.
The car park behind St Mary’s Church Hall, Fordingbridge from 1.30pm to 3pm on Friday.
How the idea developed
Claire Martin, FareShare’s business development manager, said the idea came up during a one-on-one staff appraisal session, adding: “We realised the need was out there but we also realised that we weren’t helping enough individuals that were really struggling.
“This idea evolved prior to Covid happening and got pushed from the radar simply to deal with the pure magnitude of the food that we were receiving, especially at the beginning of Covid.
“This made things worse as the need for these larders to be set up was now needed more than ever. We eventually got our first one up and running in September 2020 some six months later than originally planned once the volume of food that we were receiving settled down to a manageable level.”
Claire says there are plans to set up more community larders in the future.
The response so far
Speaking about the response so far, she said: “The response that we have received so far has been amazing. We are constantly receiving feedback from families that are receiving the food telling us that they have been able to spend extra money on bills because they have had such amazing bags of food which in turn has helped to spend their money on different things such as heat and electric bills.”
Volunteers
Claire added: "We are always in need of volunteers whether it is for our larders projects or just help with normal picking and packing. We offer different volunteer roles such as drivers, driver mates and pickers and packers. We are very grateful for any hours that people can offer to volunteer."
How to find out more
Go to fareshare.org.uk
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