Cambridge: A Community At Work
Last week we published the new Covid-19 Emergency Food Response report showcasing the extraordinary amount of work carried out by Cambridge Food Poverty Alliance and communities across the city who made sure those in need were able to access food during the pandemic.
Established and coordinated by Cambridge Sustainable Food CIC, Cambridge Food Poverty Alliance is an alliance of frontline organisations, faith groups, agencies, housing providers and local authority representatives that work together to alleviate food poverty in the city. The ongoing work of the Alliance, including delivery of the city’s Food Poverty Action Plan, was adapted to the ever-changing circumstances of the past year to help vulnerable people access food and services. The Alliance has supported diverse groups and organisations to step up together and tackle the challenges in the city.
It is clear that in Cambridge, as elsewhere in the country, Covid-19 has highlighted and compounded ongoing issues associated with poverty and austerity. Food insecurity was already prevalent in the UK before the pandemic but has been dramatically exacerbated by Covid-19, leaving many people vulnerable to hunger and poor diets. Food justice is at the forefront of the work of the Alliance and forms the approach taken in tackling the underlying causes of food insecurity, which this report covers.
Whilst this report tries to capture the enormous amount of work that has taken place across the city in the last year, it is impossible to capture it all. From the tireless work of hundreds of volunteers and community activists, mutual aid groups and the generosity of donors large and small, to Cambridge City Council who seconded staff and allocated a base for the food redistribution centre, local businesses and chefs cooking up a storm and growers including CoFarm, the response in the city has been phenomenal.
The report details the scope of work and achievements across the city between April 2020 and March 2021. This report highlights the achievements and reach of the Community Food Hubs and community meals initiative, the central role that the Cambridge Community Food Centre plays, and also celebrates the essential role volunteers, local businesses and organisations have played to make this all possible. We also explore the work of Cambridge Food Poverty Alliance members across the city such as Cambridge City Foodbank, FoodCycle, It Takes a City, Karim Foundation, The Cambridge Housing Society Ltd, The Red Hen Project and Cambridge United Community Trust.
Here’s a snapshot of what the Cambridge community have achieved in the last year
Read the full report here to discover the inspiring work carried out by the Cambridge Food Poverty Alliance, alongside the many dedicated members of the community, who have been working nonstop towards a common goal; to make sure that no-one in Cambridge went hungry during the pandemic.