The Beacon Community Cafe crowdfunding project in Salford.

Community Pride CIC have teamed up with a local cafe to create The Beacon Community Cafe in May 2020, to provide a free meals on wheels service. It has now launched a crowdfunding page to raise money to keep the service going.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Community Pride CIC found that there was a severe concern with food poverty within the Salford community. Covid-19 has impacted on finances, carers not being able to enter homes and one-to-one care wasn't able to the sick and vulnerable. Foodbanks, food clubs and community meals have not been open which has impacted on those in need, including those who did not qualify for a food parcel or who required special dietary needs.

Community Pride CIC brought together a local cafe owner and a group of local people who had been previously operating free community lunches and who also had experience in homelessness. Together they created The Beacon Community Cafe. The aim of the community cafe is to support those who are struggling with food poverty within Salford.

The Beacon Community Cafe is providing weekly deliveries of seven home-made frozen meals and it has able enabled six people to earn a living wage, whilst keeping open a local business.So far it has provided over 2800 free meals for those who have been struggling financially and living with life-limiting illness alone.

As well as providing meals, The Beacon Community Cafe team have also been able to provide welfare checks and socially distanced home checks on vulnerable and isolated Salford residents.

The Beacon Community Cafe is now looking to raise funds to keep this essential service going so that they can continue to deliver free meals and welfare support to local people. Donations will help the cafe to become a community-owned social enterprise. They also have plans to train young people and homeless people to become kitchen volunteers and will support them to obtain free qualifications. The cafe would also use food donations from local supermarkets to reduce food waste and help the environment.

Money raised through the donations will also help to cover the cost of rent, insurance, petrol, PPE and most importantly, it will provide a living wage for another three local people who will help to run the service on a weekly basis. Donations will further cover the cost of essential food items, cover the cost of training volunteers, cost of promotional materials and other operational costs. The more donations that are received, the more that the cafe can expand its capacity to reach more people of Salford.

To donate, click here to go to the funding page.