Reuben was also a part of our speakers panel at our webinar on 3rd December 2025.
Watch the recording – Unpacking the latest findings on food insecurity in Brighton & Hove
If you ask food project founders for their origin story, most will tell you their motivation was to address an unmet need in their community. With a background as a social prescriber, Reuben Davidson frequently needed to help clients access support from food banks. This need is particularly pressing – Trussell’s Hunger in the UK report found that LGBTQ+ people experience food insecurity at double the rate of the general population, often facing added barriers to access. Driven to create a more inclusive community space, Reuben opened The Village Food Bank in November 2024.
What does an LGBTQ+ Food Bank look like?
Twice a month, the food bank provides food, toiletries, household essentials, pet food, clothing and more to low-income LGBTQ+ people that live in Brighton & Hove. Visitors can browse the market stall tables, choose what they would like, and stay for a cup of tea and biscuits, or to read the children’s books. Their client base is growing each time, with young people, parents and children regularly attending.
“We have actually a really diverse base within the LGBT community, which is also reflected in our volunteer crew, which is I think really important.” Reuben tells us. “It just helps people feel reflected in the space. More than half of our clients are trans and non-binary, 70% have a disability or long-term health condition, 75% are neurodivergent. And 20% of them are refugees or asylum seekers. 30% are people of colour.”
An intersectional approach is vital because of the community’s diversity, and the sad fact that minoritised groups are more likely to experience poverty. Trussell’s data shows that food insecurity is highest among LGBTQIA+ people who are also women or from a racially minoritised background, demonstrating the impact of multiple intersecting identities. The data also reveals that LGBTQIA+ people referred to food banks are more likely to have a mental health condition than others. Therefore, food support services need to adopt a broad approach to inclusivity to be welcoming to the entire LGBTQ+ community.
Key principles at the Village Food Bank:
- Community atmosphere – Community table where clients are welcome to sit, have refreshments and chat for as long as they like, with music.
- Encouraging collaboration – Allowing volunteers to give feedback on decisions, a briefing session before and debriefing after to discuss operations and concerns, allowing input into running the space.
- Diversity of volunteer base – Encourages people from varied backgrounds and spoken language to attend, feel included and represented in the space.
- Gender inclusivity – Encouraging volunteers to use gender-neutral language, wear name badges with pronouns, take feedback to improve.
- Embracing community supermarket model – Allowing customers some choice over what they would like, including fresh produce from FareShare.
- Catering to diverse needs – Dietary requirements, multilingual volunteers, kids clothes/toys for families, toiletries, clothing, pet food, opening from 4-6pm to accommodate those at work or on school run.
How did it get started?
There were several challenges and setbacks along the way to creating this service. Finding a reliable, accessible, inclusive venue that was within their small budget was a barrier at first, but they have been successfully running the food bank from the Brighthelm Centre this year. Volunteer recruitment is also the first hurdle for all projects, especially ones like the Village Food Bank where no one is paid. The initial volunteer drive resulted in a committed volunteer base and board of directors. While limited by volunteers fitting it in around busy lives, Reuben says that “people have really put their heart and soul and time into seeing us get to where we are.”
Reuben explains that diverse funding sources and enthusiastic supporters make all the difference. On top of grants from the local authority, most of the food and toiletries donations actually come through events. “People that put on gigs ask people to bring an item for the food bank as their entry fee. And we recently won £1,500 from Brighton Soup”. These funds will go towards storage costs, hire costs, and food stock, particularly culturally appropriate food choices.
What’s next for The Village Food Bank?
If the food bank can secure sources of long-term funding, lasting improvements to the service could be made. A bigger venue with a storeroom, fridge and freezer they can access 24/7 would allow them to make the most of surplus food offers that can come in at any time. Being able to pay a staff member would allow dedicated time to be invested back into the project. Adding a delivery service, ideally by electric cargo bike, would cater to those unable to reach the site due to health conditions or neurodiversity.
Reuben dreams of seeing a LGBTQ+ food bank in every city. But modelling inclusivity in existing food projects is just as important as creating new safe havens. Around a third of food projects who responded to our 2025 survey reported noticing an increase in LGBQT+ attendees at their projects. Reuben aims for the work of the Village Food Bank to not continue in isolation, with knowledge gained here to be shared amongst the wider network of food projects.
How can we widen this impact?
There are several ways to improve inclusivity in food settings. Asking carefully chosen equalities questions when clients register is not only useful for funding bids. It also builds on data about poverty within minoritised communities and can guide how best to address that need. BHFP are working with the whole network with the aim to streamline city-wide referral systems in the coming year. The insights on best practice from a range of projects, including the Village food bank, will be taken into consideration.
Things like improving the wording of registration forms, only asking necessary questions, using pronouns correctly, providing gender neutral toilets, and offering menstrual products to include everyone who menstruates, are all practical ways to be respectful of LGBTQ+ food bank visitors. But as Reuben explains, what’s most important is the ethos and intention underling it all.
“The community vibes that we create, that’s not just for the clients themselves. That is also for the volunteers, so they want to spend time in that space, enjoy chatting with each other, hanging out, and believe in what we’re doing. I think that, again, the diversity aspect is important. It’s not just like, you know, the one person of colour in a room full of white people. I think that has led to more diversity and people feeling more included.”
Reuben is working with the Brighton & Hove Food Partnership to offer training resources back to the wider network. Whatever stage of inclusivity a food project is at, the aim is to work together to coordinate better support for marginalised people across the city. The Village Food Bank sprung up so that LGBTQ+ people didn’t need to question if they would feel welcome or safe when seeking food support. Removing the stigma and barriers to LBGTQ+ people wherever they seek food support is the ultimate goal.
