Nourishing Norfolk Awards Winners Announced

Food hubs help to encourage healthy eating, menu planning and help members to try seasonal produce. This award recognises the food hub doing more to help their members eat healthily.

Winner

The Feed

The Feed has hosted community cookery classes in Community Café next door to their supermarket, giving people the confidence to make healthier meals on a budget. They have also shared their recipes across the Nourishing Norfolk Network, and have engaged people to make healthier choices through fun activities at local events, such as their highly creative ‘Human Fruit Machine’.

Runner-ups

• The Phoenix Larder, Norwich Helping provide community meals and school holiday lunches at the Centre.
• Fakenham Food Fellowship Showcasing budget cooking at the Royal Norfolk Show.
• Steps Community Food Shop, Wymondham For their Food In School Holidays (FISH) programme.

Sponsor: The Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association

“The Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association is delighted to be sponsoring the Healthy Eating Award. Having supported the Nourishing Norfolk project since its inception we want to ensure that as many people as possible recognise the importance of locally grown produce and how our food producing community can help overcome food poverty. Broadening an understanding of how to develop a healthy diet is critical to improving wellbeing and addressing many other issues. We wish everyone involved the best of luck.”

Communities are built by Volunteers. This award recognises the hub that has gone the extra mile by inspiring and supporting their vital volunteer team.

Winner

The Pantry, Kenninghall

From the very beginning, this food hub has been led by an inspirational group of volunteers. They first started delivering food from their own homes during the pandemic and worked with Norfolk Community Foundation to develop The Pantry. Volunteers have had access and support to gain qualifications that have built confidence and self-esteem. A professional, thorough approach to finding and retaining volunteers has ensured a high-quality and consistent service to Pantry members.

Runner-ups

• Sally’s Store, Great Yarmouth Supporting and engaging volunteers from diverse local communities.
• Shrublands Community Food Club, Gorleston Helping their volunteers build confidence.
• The Food Pantry, Feltwell Coordinating volunteers to offer extra support for their members.
• ENYP Social Supermarket, Norwich Supporting volunteers to help customers in the food hub and beyond.

Sponsor: Holiday Inn

“Food Hubs has become a vital lifeline to so many people and as a business we wanted to show our acknowledgement of the hard work that all the managing volunteers do by sponsoring this award to say thank you for the continuous hard work and service that you all have supplied to the communities around you.” 

This award recognises the food hub that has developed an innovative wrap-around support offer, either in-house or with help from partners.

Winner

Dereham Food Cabin

The Food Cabin helps link people with services they need which are offered through Wellspring Family Centre. This could be a mental health support group, parent and toddler sessions, help with literacy or support with homelessness. We also give a special mention to Jayne, who delivered care packages to a family who were in Great Ormond Street Hospital with one of their children for a considerable length of time.

Runner-ups

• The Shelf, Diss Channelling support through the Citizen’s Advice Bureau.
• Watton Food Hub Engaging with local schools and offering a ‘Community Hot-Spot’.
• Earlham Community Shop, Norwich Taking a holistic view of families to offer support.
• North Lynn Food Hub Working with their host organisation for greater impact.

Sponsor: Hopestead

“At Hopestead, we understand the vital role food hubs play. Positioned at the very heart of community life, they have a significant impact on those facing the toughest challenges. Through our sponsorship of the Food Hub Building Pathways for Help Award, we aim to celebrate the remarkable efforts of food hubs that go above and beyond. These hubs not only provide meals, but they also collaborate with partners to develop innovative solutions to offer comprehensive support and build trust. This award recognises their commitment to creating sustainable communities and ensuring that no one is left behind.”

We need to support practices that encourage eating food that as good for the planet as it is for us. This award recognises the hub working to save miles, help the environment, and inspire members to shop local and eat fresh.

Winner

Coastal Community Supermarket

The Coastal Community Supermarket uses its van to redistribute excess food across the north and west Norfolk food hubs, helping ensure everyone has what they need and less goes to waste. They also work with Holkham Estate and Arthur Howell Butchers to supply local food for local people.

Runner-ups

• Purfleet Pantry, King’s Lynn Collecting surplus food locally to reduce waste.
• Sheringham Food Club Working with local growers and incorporating green architecture.
• Caister Community Larder Engaging with local businesses to reduce waste.

Sponsor: The Forum

“The Forum is proud to sponsor The Food Hub Eco Award. The Forum’s programme of free events and festivals provide access to culture and entertainment for everyone, but our work with communities across Norfolk has shown the impact of the cost of living, and we want to be part of the solution to food poverty.”

In a tough economic climate, people have done amazing things to raise funding for this project they care so passionately about. This award recognises the fundraiser who inspired action to achieve more.

Winner

Jarrolds

Jarrolds held a range of events, such staff curry and quiz nights and upcycled fashion shows, to really engage their employees with fundraising efforts. Several employees chose Nourishing Norfolk for their Run Norwich sponsorship, and Jarrolds also found creative ways of supporting our work beyond just funding or food alone.

Runner-ups

• Norfolk Superhero Supporting North Norfolk food hubs through their yearly quadrathlon fundraiser.
• Civic Charity Appeal Creatively engaging the Norwich community to support local hubs.
• Jarrolds Choosing Nourishing Norfolk as their Charity of the Year.

Sponsor: Together for Mental Wellbeing

“Together is the UK’s oldest community mental health charity and was founded in 1879. We believe that people who experience mental distress have the right to live meaningful and fulfilling lives in their community and be free from the harsh impacts of poverty and deprivation.
In Norfolk alone, we support hundreds of people with severe mental illness to access community resources and since the cost-of-living crisis have seen people struggling to make ends meet and will frequently go without food and other essentials. We have found The Nourishing Norfolk Food Hubs to be an essential lifeline for some of the most vulnerable people in society.
Together are very proud to be sponsoring “The Fundraising Award” as we know how important fundraising is to ensure the food hubs are both available and well stocked for those that need them the most. Whilst our ultimate wish would be that there was no need for Food Banks and Hubs; until there is an end to this very real crisis we hope that everyone in society plays their part to support those in need.”

Nourishing Norfolk’s success is due to so many local businesses working to help get their local food hub off the ground. This award recognises exceptional support provided by a business that has helped grow our community.

Winner

Norse Group

Norse have been critical in helping bring the operation to the whole county. They have provided expertise, warehouse space and scheduled weekly deliveries across Norfolk to every hub. Norse’s support has transformed what we have been able to offer our communities, providing a nationally unique solution to the challenge of food supply. They also provided support by servicing Nourishing Norfolk mobile food stores and have given support through Interprint for printed materials.

Runners-up

• Belvoir Sales and Lettings Providing ongoing marketing help and staff volunteer hours.
• Nurture Marketing Giving staff time for branding and marketing.
• Felton Fundraising Delivering tailored learning sessions for Nourishing Norfolk food hubs.

Sponsor: The Norfolk Club

 “The Norfolk Club is a private members’ club over 250 years old and founded by Norfolk men in the heart of Norwich. It’s members have supported businesses and organisations throughout the County over this long period. It is fitting therefore that with such an established history of promoting the County we should sponsor “The Norfolk Business that has gone the extra mile” award, thereby ensuring the further success of a county we all love and support. It is this extra effort by local businesses that can make a difference to the people of Norfolk. Our congratulations to the deserving winner of this award.”

Nourishing Norfolk is about providing food and essential products at an affordable price. This award recognises the provider who has given game changing support through food hubs.

Winners

hey girls

The charity has helped to fill a vital gap in period products that so many households were unable to access. They have transformed the daily lives of so many food hub customers across Norfolk. They have gone beyond just providing Nourishing Norfolk food hubs with free period products; they offer advice and guidance for free to anyone in need through a range of support booklets, from those just starting their periods to dads unsure of how to approach the topic with their children.

Runners-up

• Booker – Helping provide an affordable and reliable range of store cupboard essentials.
• Easy Cleaning Solutions – Donating surplus supplies to ensure hub members have the dignity of clean clothes & homes.
• Warburtons – Providing regular, reliable, fresh bread products across Breckland.
• Ankosé – Pioneering chilled food provision in Norfolk food hubs, and now beyond.
• Arthur Howell Butchers – Helping supply low-cost food and increasing confidence in cooking skills.

Sponsor: Brown & Co

“As one of the largest providers of farming, land and rural property advice in the country, with 100 employees in Norwich city centre and 300 across our business, we are proud to support the Norfolk Community Foundation. We are committed to supporting the Norfolk Community Foundations objectives and activities, and through our client relationships and our own business, do what we can to help raise the profile for and address the needs of those less fortunate than ourselves and whom are sometimes in need of support.

We should all aspire to do more for the communities we live and work in, and as a major employer in Norwich and Norfolk,  we are committed to doing so with the help of the Norfolk Community Foundation.”