For the latest, read the full 2024 report or look at the summary.
It has got harder to eat well on a budget in 2024. Low wages and benefits mean millions of UK households are struggling to afford essentials, especially fruits and vegetables. Our survey in Brighton and Hove found 6,300 people need food support each week, an 18% rise since 2022. Without action from policy makers, food poverty will continue to be the new normal.
But residents in Brighton and Hove are taking matters into their own hands. In 2020, The Phoenix Food Shop was set up, with support from Brighton & Hove Food Partnership. This volunteer-run project provides low-cost food options to surrounding estates from their base at the local Community Centre. It is run by and for a neighbourhood with levels of deprivation far higher than the country’s average. A visit to the centre reveals the powerful ways investing in local food sharing initiatives benefits local communities.
A Community-Led Solution
I spoke to David, who has been an active member of the food hub from the start. During COVID lockdowns, he used his free time to join his sister and founders Sarah and Simon to set up the initiative.
“It was hard to start with because we hadn’t done anything like that before. We threw ourselves in the deep end. The whole idea was to have a base where people come in and pick what they want, like we do now. But because of COVID we had to deliver. It helped in the long run, we got an idea of what people want and how to help them. The second all the restrictions are lifted, people could come in.”
David is one of the many volunteers who also receives groceries as a community shop member. Being a resident of the community being served makes volunteering especially meaningful.
“I love doing it. It’s obviously nice to help out, and we like to have a laugh at the same time as getting everything done. We are all there to help the community I was raised in. That’s the only motivation needed. Giving back was always something I personally wanted to do. Obviously I’ve seen my parents struggle, I’ve seen my friends’ parents struggle back in the days. We have something for those local kids now thanks to the food hub.”
Bags of value
On Thursday’s from 12pm, members are welcomed in to choose tinned goods, sanitary products, meat, cheese, vegetables and harvests from the community center’s garden. With the soaring price of essentials, especially fresh produce, the bumper weekly food bags priced at just £7.50 help families like David’s make ends meet.
“I know it helps my mum a lot because it was one less thing to have to worry about money wise. You can get four or five meals out of it for big families. I know a lot of people look forward to it. They struggle the night before for dinner, and then they come here and can have a really nice dinner the next night.”
Winter can hit hardest, so Phoenix Food Shop were already putting money aside in Autumn, collecting donations and doing a fundraising event for Christmas. David said that while it takes a lot to organise, preparing the Christmas hampers is something he loves to do. For a small extra cost, members get things like cheeseboards, boxes of chocolates and Christmas puddings.
“You see peoples reactions, everyone’s happy and you know that people are gonna have a good Christmas period. Especially the single mothers who are already spending loads of money to make it a special day. Because of the hampers they now don’t have to worry about food.”
Local collaborators help too. The Phoenix Arts Centre store the festive supplies and provide art packs for children. “It was very important to Sarah and Simon early on to build good connections with the community spaces around us,” says David. These relationships bring activities and events to the centre throughout the year, making it a vibrant place.
An open door for all
Coming in from the pelting rain and through the doors of the Phoenix Food Hub on a wet autumn day, there is a positive atmosphere and laughter in the air. The importance of creating a welcoming space for reciprocal support really came across when speaking to the volunteers.
Coming forward for food support for the first time can feel difficult, so the volunteers do what they can to reduce any tension or stigma. The fact that many volunteers are also members makes the whole experience more relatable.
“That open environment is important because we’re inviting to everyone. If you feel that you need help, we don’t ask questions. There’s no shame to be felt. In my childhood I was very stubborn about asking for help, my mum was too, so I know what it’s like. We do have difficulties every now and then, but you don’t get a lot of hostility because it’s quite a nice environment. I think it’s because everyone’s on the same page, there’s an understanding.”
Removing other barriers to accessing the food shop is an important part of the offering. A ramp is available for buggies or wheelchair users and other adjustments are made where possible. “If someone can’t carry the bag home, me or someone else will carry it for them. For some people it is too far and the hills are absolutely horrible!”
Overall, David has noticed the food hub improves cohesion in the neighbourhood. “We bring a lot of people together, different genders, different races, different religions. All people who probably wouldn’t be together in one area. People have friendships they wouldn’t have made otherwise. It just makes an overall close-knit community.”
An uncertain future
Despite the tangible benefits being provided, keeping the project running at capacity is a challenge. Members who can take the initiative to, come fortnightly instead of weekly, meaning an extra bag can help someone else.
Co-operation from supermarkets when they go to buy the bulk of their supplies has been very valuable. Staff now understand the aims of the food hub and management will often open up a till just to serve them. This expense is necessary because donations and surplus food deliveries can’t be relied upon to stock the food hub, but David assures me “nothing goes to waste. Those little extras from FareShare go down really well!”. Even when their members can’t use items, they are then shared to other food projects across Brighton.
The need in their community is not diminishing and reliable long-term funding would help them keep their doors open. “I hope we’re able to keep running,” David tells me. “At one point we were a bit worried, then we got quite a big donation that really helped us keep going. We’re trying to keep the base offer the same. But it gets increasingly hard not to make cuts to what we give. Food prices are doubling, tripling. I’m sure other food projects have the same problem. We’re all trying to get the same kind of funding for the same kind of people.” Businesses and organisations who can provide funding are asked to step forward.
David feels that if more local services came to the Phoenix Community Shop and spoke to their members in person, they would get better engagement with this community. “We’ve done the hard part and got everyone from the area into one room. Their part would just be talking to them in person, it’s not the biggest ask.”
Food hubs everywhere
David’s passion for his community and the project is clear. His hope is that his words can support all areas of Brighton & Hove to have their own Food Hub project.
“It’s very helpful for the Food Partnership to spread the word to other areas that might not have a community supermarket to feel more inspired to set one up, so there’s less people struggling. I think if you haven’t ever run a food project, it’s always good to pop in just to have a look. I remember when I first started, it was not at all what I expected it to be. It’s much more community based.
I think the end goal would be for everyone who possibly needs it to have access to the help whether they want it or not. Obviously you can’t force everyone to get the help, but you know if you offer it, you’ve done your job.”
How you can help
Contact Phoenix Food Shop to find out how you can become a member, donate or volunteer.
Donate time, food and money to support your local project.
Can your businesses or organisations provide funding and donations? Join our Food SOS programme.
Emergency Food Network Report 2024
For the latest, read our 2024 report.
