Delivering food parcels in his community: Daneel Phillips and Made in Hackney

We spoke to Poplar guardian Daneel back in April this year about his volunteering with Made in Hackney, a community cookery school that, when the pandemic hit, turned its hand to supporting vulnerable members of the local community.

We recently caught up with Khin, Volunteer Manager at Made in Hackney, to see how they’ve adapted over the past 18 months and how volunteers like Daneel contribute to the direct impact they are making in their community.

“When Made in Hackney started around nine years ago we were the first fully plant-based cookery school and charity in the UK. When the pandemic hit, we realised that we could offer our support, and that food was more important than ever. People still need meals, especially those who are vulnerable, and we could use our knowledge to run online classes for people at home.

“We crowdfunded like crazy to offer a community meal service, going door to door and delivering vegan meals by bike. We still continue our delivery service today, and meet at the Queen of Hoxton kitchen space each Tuesday and Thursday, where professional chefs cook 1,000 meals each week. Cyclists like Daneel come by at 4 o’clock and deliver to between 150 to 200 households.

“Daneel has done so many hours for us and we’re so grateful to him – he’s a terrific supporter! He’s even running the Hackney half marathon with some of our other volunteers, who are raising money for Made in Hackney.”

Property guardian Daneel has contributed almost 700 hours of volunteering during his time with Dot Dot Dot, with many of these going towards his work with Made in Hackney.

“This is my first time volunteering consistently. I’d been meaning to do it for such a long time and the fact that it’s part of my guardianship is great as it gave me the drive and encouragement I’d been waiting for. Now I know it makes me feel good, improves my mental health and enables me to meet different people.”

Addressing health inequalities and food access in Hackney

Made in Hackney is about more than just food delivery. “Our ethos is really about addressing our community health crisis – on both a local and environmental level – to address issues with health inequalities, food access and climate change. The meals we cook and deliver are all local and sustainable – that’s why we use bicycles, too – and we are lucky enough to get donations from local providers like Edible London and Street Box.

“What we’re hoping for is that more people will be like Daneel and volunteer with us, especially cyclists and people who can come and help out in the kitchen. There’s all kinds of things you can help with, not just cooking – you can help with carrying supplies in or with portioning and packing up meals. We also need volunteers for our cookery school where you can join us as a class assistant. We induct volunteers into our school and teach them about vegan cooking. We are now able to hold our cookery classes in person as well as online at our kitchen in Clapham Common.”

If you’d like to find out how you can get involved in Made in Hackney, check out their volunteering page. If you’re interested in becoming a property guardian, take our short eligibility quiz. 

Life as a Dot Dot Dot guardian: Mahmoud, Oxford

From Dot Dot Dot guardian, Mahmoud, Oxford

I first heard of Dot Dot Dot through a friend who was a property guardian in Oxford. At the time I was living in a flat near my restaurant, Za’atar Bake which was expensive for the area. When the lockdown started last year, I realised I needed to save money in order to be able to sustain my business – otherwise I’d lose it. I saw that there was a Dot Dot Dot flat available so took my chance and applied. Now I’m saving hundreds of pounds each month which gives me peace of mind that my restaurant will be OK.

Last May, we started offering free home-cooked meals every day during lockdown to the homeless and others who couldn’t afford to buy their own food in our community. We thought maybe 10-15 people would show up. We ended up regularly giving away 60 meals a day. A lot of the money I’m saving through living with Dot Dot Dot is redirected to the restaurant and goes towards providing the free meals. I’m grateful to know that I can do this with comfort and continue to do so once we can reopen which I’m hoping will be in March for our community.

We also did a meal for 90 people on Christmas Day for people who didn’t have anyone to spend it with – we were really supported by the community who gave us a Christmas tree, decorations, lighting and we were even gifted 300kg of rice! Oxford Hub (a social action charity committed to bringing people and organisations together) invited us all to have a free buffet to say thank you and I even spoke to the Oxford Lord Mayor about more ways to give back to the community. It’s great to see people paying attention and thinking about other ways they can help.

Since we started offering free meals we have also seen our sales increase through people coming in to support us and our bond with the community has gotten stronger. We didn’t want donations or to make money off the back of offering free meals, so the best way that we can be supported is through people coming and enjoying the food at Za’atar Bake. Giving is about giving to everybody and doing charitable work is an amazing feeling. I want to spread good vibes and hope to the Oxford community and I’m proud to do it. It keeps us all going to see people being positively affected by what we’re doing.

I love sports and staying active, and last June I set a challenge for the community called ‘Running for 30k’ (or ‘Walk for 30k’!). People had one month to either run or walk everyday until they reached their goal of 30k – the aim was to get people outdoors in the fresh air and enjoying sport. Once they’d reached their goal of 30k they were able to come to my restaurant and claim their free lunch or dinner. So many people got involved and one woman told me it was the first time in her life that she felt fitter and lost weight. It shows what happens when you give people a challenge and spread hope.

A lot of people don’t think about giving time to charity when they’re busy with their lives and working hard. It’s all too easy to not think about giving back. Since living with Dot Dot Dot, I’ve not only saved money but gained flexibility in my life in order to give what I can to my community. I enjoy living in a society where we do what we can to help others.

You can find out more about the work that Mahmoud and his team are doing for the Oxford community here. You can also read more stories here from our guardians on how living with Dot Dot Dot has given them the freedom and flexibility to pursue their goals.

Where and how to volunteer during the Covid-19 crisis

It’s crucial that we’re all observing self-isolation right now. But the need to provide help and support to others is also more important than ever. Whether it’s donating goods or money to those who are less fortunate than you or cooking meals for your friends and neighbours who are either still working or too vulnerable to leave the house, every little bit helps. There are a multitude of ways that you can volunteer during the Covid-19 crisis but we’ve compiled our own list of easy ways that you can get involved – read on to discover an option that suits you.

1. Cook for your community

If you know someone who works for the NHS or in hospitality, it’s likely that they’re still going into work. Whatever their profession, they might be struggling to make it to the supermarkets whilst the shelves are still stocked. It’s no secret that comfort food soothes the soul, so what better way to help your friends and neighbours out than by cooking up some of their favourite recipes?

The great thing is that you can easily do this whilst avoiding contact with others – just leave these meals on your friend’s doorstep! Not forgetting that cooking can help to qualm any stress and anxieties you may be feeling about coronavirus. Check back here for our top recipe recommendations coming soon!

2. Assist food banks under strain

Food banks are an essential community service but are under immense pressure to ensure that no one goes without during the coronavirus crisis. The Trussell Trust, the UK’s largest network of food banks as well as smaller, local food banks will press on to provide as much support as they can to communities during the outbreak.

So how can you provide much-needed reinforcement to food banks at this critical time? Provided you are not at-risk yourself and have the time needed to volunteer, click here to find your local food bank. You can also volunteer by finding out and donating their most needed food items – these will differ from day to day so keep checking back to find out their most needed items.

3. Look out for the vulnerable in your community

The government’s advice is that we must now avoid all but essential social contact. As a consequence, this will mean that for most of us, we need to wave goodbye to many of our regular social activities and accept that spending a majority of our time at home will become our new normal. As we adjust to this new and different pace of life, it’s important that we keep up our contact with others, whether by phone calls, social media or video chats – find new ways of staying close to those who matter to you.  

If you are aware of someone in your building, community or neighbourhood who could be at risk of feeling isolated (pay particular mind to over 65’s or the elderly), volunteer to be their point of contact during this period of uncertainty and separation. This could involve being ready to do their shopping, video calling them regularly, or batch cooking their meals if they are less able to do so.

4. Walk your neighbours dog and more by joining your local mutual aid group

More than 1,000 community focused mutual aid groups have been popping up across the UK. Umbrella organisation, Covid-19 Mutual Aid UK is coordinating localised groups designed to support those who are self-isolating. Whether it’s dog walking, shopping, delivering medicine or other daily tasks, they’ll connect you with people in your local area who you may not otherwise know are in need of help. So far tens of thousands of people have come forward to offer their support.

Here is a comprehensive and growing list of nationwide Covid-19 mutual aid groups, making it quick and easy for you to find one in your local community. There’s also the opportunity to help shape and run these groups even if you’re the one self-isolating. If you’re fit and healthy, this is a great way to volunteer to keep your community afloat and to provide hope to elderly residents who could be forced to self-isolate for four months.

5. Volunteer virtually

If you can’t leave the house either because you’re self-isolating or you’d simply prefer not to, there are a myriad of ways that you can spend your time constructively by volunteering online. The Covid-19 Mutual Aid group is currently searching for people who can digitally facilitate and build digital tools. From researchers to product managers to engineers to designers, let them know what skills you can offer and how much time you can commit and they’ll get in touch to help you get started.

Alternatively, check out our list below to discover an online volunteering opportunity to suit your needs:

Mental health & crisis support:

• Texting services Shout, Young Minds & Crisis
• Help those in crisis with online platform I’mAlive

Education:

• Mentoring with Brightside
• Teach online with School in the Cloud

Crafts:

• Sewing blankets with Binky Patrol
• Knit for premature babies with Bliss

Global support:

• Assist global crisis relief efforts with Missing Maps
• Find out how your skills can help the UN

Whilst many of these options may be suited to you, if they haven’t sparked your interest try using do-it.org or Reach Volunteering. Both have ‘do it from home’ preferences enabling you to narrow down your search for a remote volunteering opportunity that you can get behind. Why not also check out Remote Volunteering Options That Work For You? There you can check out more options and some top tips on how to get started today.

This week’s top five volunteering opportunities

1.Hackney Winter Shelter
Where: St Anne’s Church, Hoxton
When: Every Saturday – 4.30 – 7.30pm 
Category: Food, Homeless, Shelter
Commitment Level: Ad Hoc

Hackney Winter Shelter run a soup kitchen at the back of St Anne’s church in Hoxton every saturday. They serve a three course dinner for up to 60 people a week. You can come along on an ad hoc basis to set up, serve food, wash up and chat to guests. If this is something that interests you, email Leanne: leannegoodchild@hotmail.com

2.Beanstalk Charity
Where: Various 
When: Various
Category: Education, Young People
Commitment Level: Ongoing

Beanstalk is a national literacy charity that supports volunteers to work in primary schools with children who have fallen behind with their reading. As a Beanstalk reading helper you will work with children on a one-to-one basis. You would be working with 3 children and would see each child for two 30-minute sessions a week during term time. For more information see here and to register your interest email: SFeleppa@trust-thamesmead.co.uk

3.Greenwich and Docklands International Festival
Where: Greenwich and Docklands
When: 24^th June – 2^nd July
Category: Festival, Arts, Theatre
Commitment Level: Various

Greenwich and Docklands International Festival is London’s leading festival of free outdoor performing arts. They are looking for enthusiastic and dependable people who can help make the festival happen. There are a variety of roles – to see more and apply, click here.

4.Tottenham Ploughman Riverfest

Where: Lordship Hub, N17
When: 29th May 11am-6pm
Category: Festival, Rivers, Community
Commitment Level: Ad Hoc

Tottenham Ploughman Riverfest are looking for volunteers to film the event, hand out leaflets in advance and to help compere the stage. The RiverFest is an opportunity to bring communities together and to make their rivers better. To find out more, click here. If you are interested in getting involved, please email Cheryl: info@tottenhamploughman.com

5. Play Days

Where: Lordship Rec, near Bruce Grove
When: 26th June
Category: Community, arts, 
Commitment Level: Ad Hoc

Play Days is a festival of (child’s) play for adults. It’s about communities coming together and having a good time. There are a variety of opportunities in event production, event management, games facilitation and craft workshop leaders. To find out more about the day and to express your interest, click here.

This week’s top five micro-volunteering opportunities

1.Motor Neurone Disease Association 

Complete a SnapAction to help raise awareness of motor neurone disease (MND) on social media.

Share their infographic  on Facebook or re-tweet on Twitter. Don’t forget to include the hashtags #SnapAction and #MND

For more information, click here.

2.Johnson and Johnson 

You take a photo, they make it a way to do good.

For every photo you share through Donate a Photo, Johnson and Johnson gives $1 to a cause you want to help.

To find out more, click here.

3.Casserole Club

Casserole Club volunteers share extra portions of home-cooked food with people in their area who aren’t always able to cook for themselves. They share once a week, once a month, or whenever works best for them.

To find out more, see here.

4.CharityPush

CharityPush is a portal of free to install apps and games. Download the apps you want and for every one CharityPush donate money to various partner charities.

For more information, see here.

5.Postcard Happiness

Send postcards to others who could benefit from a posted note or a message.

To join in, click here.

This week’s top five volunteering opportunities

1.Wilton Way

Where: E8
When: 2^nd April and 16^th April
Commitment Level: One-off opportunities

On the 2^nd April Wilton Way are hosting the Hackney Deaf Childrens Society Easter Egg Hunt from 2.00-4.30pm. They are looking for some volunteers to help set up the hunt and assist the families in finding eggs around the community garden.

On the 16^th April they are hosting a Big Dig event, organised by Capital growth. For more information about this, click here.

For more information, email wiltonsway@gmail.com.

2.Girlguide Group

Where: St Hilda’s East Community Centre
When: Tuesdays 4.30-6.30pm
Commitment Level: Regular Commitment

A new east end Guide group is currently being set up, focusing on building girls’ confidence, raising aspirations and having fun in a girl only space. They need enthusiastic volunteer Leaders, Assistant Leaders, Helpers and Occasional Helpers to join our team to run this new group.  This volunteering option is for women only. For more information and to register your interest please contact Kim by emailing kim@sthildas.org.uk.

3.Trussell Trust

Where: Various
When: Various
Commitment Level: Various  

The Trussell Trust runs a network of over 400 foodbacks, giving emergency food and support to people in crisis across the UK.  To learn more and to get started, click here.

4.Alternative therapies for substance users

Where: HMP High Down
When: Various
Commitment Level: Regular Commitment

They are looking for volunteers to work with clients (prisoners) on the Substance Misuse Unit. Ideally they would like volunteers who are trained to deliver alternative therapies such as deep tissue massage and yoga/relaxation. They would like someone who can commit to delivering these sessions either twice or three times per month (Monday-Friday). For more information, click here.

5.Green Thursday Volunteers

Where: Wycombe Rye Lido Car Park
When: Thursday Morning
Commitment Level: Low – Can attend as few or as many sessions as you please

The Chiltern Rangers are looking for volunteers to help them care for the local environment and woodlands. The work varies each week but is all focused around conservation. Find out more here.

This week’s top five volunteering opportunities

1.Richard House Children’s Hospice – Bucket Collections

Where: Upton Park Stadium
When: 28^th March and 9^th April
Commitment Level: Low

Richard House Children’s Hospice are looking for people to collect donations at two football matches. On the 28^th March volunteers will arrive at 12pm to collect before the match which begins at 2pm. On the 9^th April volunteers will arrive at 10.45am to collect until the match begins at 12.45pm. For more information please contact Rachel Green on RachelG@richardhouse.org.uk

2.Providence Row

Where: Various
When: Various
Commitment Level: Various

Providence Row tackles the root causes of homelessness to help people get off, and stay off, the streets. They currently have a variety of vacancies for volunteers including in fundraising, gardening and advising. Check these out and apply here.

3.Good Gym

Where: Various
When: Various
Commitment: Low

Good Gym is a group of runners who combine keeping fit with doing good community work. You can run as a group to work on a community project, do one off missions or commit to visiting an isolated older person on a regular basis. For more information, see here.

4.Organic Food Growing Volunteer

Where: May Project Gardens
When: Various
Commitment Level: Low

May Project Gardens are looking for volunteers to come help maintain the garden. Over the coming weeks they will be focusing attention on general garden maintenance, site planning and fruit and vegetable production. For more information and to register your interest, click here.

5.Samaritans

Where: Various
When: Various
Commitment Level: Regular Commitment

The Samaritans are a round the clock listening service, which aims to provide emotional support to anyone in emotional distress or at risk of suicide. There are a range of volunteering opportunities available at their 201 branches. For more information and to apply, click here.

Progress on the edible estate

This week we returned to the raised beds to find out that the crops had already started being eaten – but by some sort of bug, not the local residents! The carrots and beetroots were especially popular with the uninvited dinner guests, with them virtually wiped out but surprisingly the lettuce was untouched so clearly we have some fussy eaters on our hands. We have been thinking about perhaps covering the beds with clear plastic sheets from now on to allow the little sprouts to survive those first crucial days growing, and we will come back to this next week and see how this new batch has done.

Following from the bug’s feast we replanted some carrots and beets and also went about filling the third bed with some new crops; spring onions and various beans. This week we also placed some grow bags around the estate in areas that will get enough light but also out of the peoples way enough to avoid any casualties, to man or plant. In these we planted tomatoes, peppers and more courgettes. Soon there will be a whole feast of veggies on the estate.

We had a great turnout from guardians with 5 of them turning up to get stuck in which was great, and the weather held out too which was a bonus. In total there were 8 of us which meant we could really get a lot done. We even set up a production line with digging the trenches along the fence where each person was involved in the process; digging, turning, clearing, planting, watering. It was team work at its very best! We also found some interesting objects along the way including lots of metal rods and a lovely teapot spout. Unfortunately however there were no residents joining in this week, we did hear a lot of cheering around the estate for the football though so perhaps that played a part in people staying indoors.

The watering rota was set out again so we are looking forward to see what the beds hold in store for us next week.

Food, Glorious Food

Food is great – not only does it keep us nourished, but a good meal with friends or even strangers binds you together in a way that nothing else does with quite such ease. On the volunteering side of things, food based projects are brilliant: they draw on skills you already have; most end up being inherently social (as is the way with food!); and most importantly many of these roles can be done on a relatively ad hoc basis or at the weekends, meaning that even people who struggle with volunteering around work hours can get involved.

Food Cycle makes excellent use of food that would otherwise be wasted – in their seventeen hubs spread over the UK which provide food for those individuals at large risk of food poverty. Volunteers can do any number of tasks: from chopping, stirring and serving, to menu planning based on the provided ingredients. Engaging with the diners is also essential – there’s something here for everyone! Currently there are four hubs in London each occurring on a different day of the week, as well as the Pie in the Sky Café, running out of the Bromley-by-Bow Centre on a daily basis.

A different approach to solving issues of food shortage or malnutrition is that undertaken by Casserole Club. An innovative idea, especially for those searching for an opportunity to volunteer as and when you can – as a member, you cook for an isolated individual in your area who would otherwise not cook for themselves. I’m certain we all have experience of the demotivation often involved in cooking anything substantial for one, and this is exactly why Casserole Club exists. It is here solely so that individuals who live alone, and who therefore may be experiencing this lack of motivation daily, can instead have a portion of something delicious and homemade with a little bit of love brought right to their door.

The Upper Room aims to improve the lives of socially vulnerable people and give them the confidence to be economically independent. UR4Meals is one of their mechanisms for doing this – providing an evening meal five days a week. As a volunteer you can get involved in the running of these meals on any day of the week, making that a weekly or even fortnightly commitment. In this role, you can either help the chef with food prep, or assist with serving, cleaning up and sharing some friendly smiles.

Tower Hamlets Foodbank takes food donated by the community and organises and redistributes this food in emergency food packages for individuals who have been referred and are in crisis. Understandably, this is the sort of operation that benefits from the power in numbers – the more collections that can be done, the more food that can be sorted, and the more foodbank attendees that can be catered for and cared for. There are vacancies also for help with admin in the office, so there is plenty to be done – get in touch if it takes your fancy and see how you can get stuck in!

Another wholly worthwhile venture is The Food Chain. Here, nutritional advice, cooking classes, communal eating opportunities, as well as weekly donated grocery supplies, are delivered to people living with HIV in London and their dependants. There are tonnes of different volunteering opportunities at The Food Chain, ranging from the regular to the more ad hoc, and the reports from current volunteers are glowing. This is well worth a look, and the variety of ways you can help mean there is surely something for everyone.

As M.F.K. Fisher wrote, “First, we eat. Then, we do everything else.” Without dedicated volunteers supporting all of these, and the many many more invaluable projects, those individuals who these initiatives support would not have the wherewithal to do what Fisher describes as, quite simply, “everything else”.  The variety of food based voluntary roles cover every single option, so if you are someone looking for heartfelt, community based volunteering with an unquantifiable impact … tuck in!

Having a Lark in the Park

Instead of yawning at the TV one September Saturday, I whizzed off on my rickety bike to find The Stockwell Festival. Luckily, when I eventually found Brixton People’s Kitchen, they’d come far better prepared, with a custom-built mobile-kitchen bike, built for free, from recycled materials, by two lovely Germans.

Bike envy aside, the day turned out to be a great one – the weather mocked the forecast and came out in (patchy) sunshine and we transformed an intimidating mound of mushrooms (weighing at least half of the 19ish kilos of saved fruit and veg) into very popular tempera titbits.

Celebrated as a great alternative to popcorn by one happy mum, they were also easy pickings whilst cooking, although decidedly trickier to photograph…

Cooking alfresco with music from the bandstand wafting over was pretty cool. Mixing this with free food that would have otherwise been landfill, and a bit of teaching kids from the children’s centre what I’d just learnt myself, made it a great day.

Other highlights were working out how to up-sell a stuffed marrow to suspicious punters and chatting over a frying pan outside with a Portuguese lady, who gave a vivid description of fruit orchards back home in Madeira, previously known only to me by the cake.