Egino Emerging (EE)

Monday, 21st November 2022

Supported by Awards For all funding, staff at Nornir have helped to set up a new social enterprise. Egino Emerging is already operating from 2 sites in North Wales proving foods for local food banks. Soon it will start to produce organic fertiliser that will be abvailable for sale to the general public.

For more information see: https://www.eginoemerging.org/about

2023 is the year when EE will be able to role its model of good practice out accross the UK.

Project update August 2022

Awards For All

Monday, 15th August 2022

Brief project summary

 To provide opportunities for people subject to an Unpaid Work Requirement of a Court Order ('Community Payback') to grow food in community gardens for donation to food  banks, food cooperatives and community pantry schemes.

  • to provide opportunities for people on Community Payback to produce commercial food and plant-related products to raise funds for food banks, food cooperatives and community pantry schemes to enable them to buy wholesale supplies of non-surplus food to supplement the dwindling supplies of surplus and donated food available to them.
  • to provide structured pathways into paid employment in the wider food sector for people successfully completing their Community Payback in the above projects.

 Initially we planned to set up a model of good practice for this with Stockport Homes 'Your Local Pantry' scheme in Stockport and then replicate the model across the country once we could prove it works.

https://www.yourlocalpantry.co.uk 

 The current situation

Nornir staff have been inundated by the demand for the project. We initially greatly underestimated the potential demand and enthusiasm for the idea from food aid projects right across the country, not just in Stockport and not just for people on Community Payback, but also for serving prisoners, ex-prisoners resident in Probation Approved Premises (hostels) and criminal justice-involved people more generally.

Consequently we very quickly widened the scope of the work for the project and now have the following exciting ventures ready to go in Hull, Burnley and Wrexham as well as Stockport, with others at an early stage of development in Nottingham, Exeter, Salford, Manchester, Rochdale and Oldham.

Arising out of our evidence to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Ending the Need for Food Banks we have also consulted with the following national food aid infrastructure bodies and volunteer food growing networks, all of whom are keen for us to run pilots of our model with their members

 We have also been contacted by the 'Greener on the Outside for Prisons.' (GOOP) Project, a Horticultural Therapy programme run by the University of Central Lancashire in prisons across North West and South West England. They are keen to work with us to adapt our model for use in prisons, starting with supplying food and raising funds for the Stockport Homes Pantries.

 

Stockport

Agreement in principle has been secured for GOOP prison projects to supply Stockport Homes Pantries with free, fresh seasonal fruit, veg and salads and raise funds for the Pantries through commercial production of garden plants and organic fertilizer to be developed by our project. This will all tie in with Stockport Homes new Ex-Prisoner Accommodation Project and offer additional volunteer opportunities for prisoners on day release and post release working in the Pantries as a pathway into jobs in food retail.

Number of prisoners involved in producing the food = 18+ at any one time

Number of beneficiaries in Pantries =  750 p.a. (5 Pantries with average membership of 150 each)

First deliveries of food expected to be Autumn 2022

First commercial Plant sales expected to be Spring 2023

Commercial organic fertilizer production expected to be fully operational by Summer 2023.

 

Burnley

Agreement has been reached with Padiham Unitarian Church to make a large area of their  land available for Community Payback Teams to supply the main Burnley Food Bank run by Burnley FC in the Community with free, fresh, seasonal fruit, veg and salads and raise funds for the Food Bank through the commercial production of garden plants and organic fertilizer to be developed by our project.

The Food Bank is currently transitioning into a Burnley-wide Pantry/Food Cooperative with the active support of the local authority. The Leader of Burnley Council is keen to see our project supply and raise funds for this initiative in line with our evidence to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Ending the Need for Food Banks.

All stakeholders concerned see our project's involvement in this as tying into the support services already operated by both the Church and Burnley FC, thus also providing pathways into paid employment for people successfully completing their Community Payback with the project..https://burnleyfccommunity.org

Number of Community Payback Workers involved in producing the food = 18+ at any one time

Number of  Food Bank/Pantry/Co-op beneficiaries = 1000+ p.a.

Land to be cleared ready for planting starting Autumn 2022

First deliveries of food expected to be Spring 2023

First Commercial Plant Sales expected to be Spring 2023

Commercial organic fertilizer production expected to be fully operational by Summer 2023

 

Hull

Agreement has been reached with a consortium of church-based Food Banks/Pantries/Co-ops and Hull Council to make up to 5 acres of council land available for Community Payback Teams to supply them with free, fresh, seasonal fruit, veg and salads and raise funds for them through the commercial production of garden plants and organic fertilizer to be developed by our project.

We are currently working with the consortium to formalise it as an independent legal entity and together with them we have co-produced evidence to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Ending the Need for Food Banks which explains in greater detail how our model works and how its roll-out nationally will make a significant contribution to ending food poverty in the UK.

Number of Community Payback Workers involved in producing the food = 18+ at any one time.

Number of Food Bank/Pantry/Co-op beneficiaries = 1000+ p.a.

Land to be cleared ready for planting starting Autumn 2022

First deliveries of food expected to be Spring 2023

First Commercial Plant Sales expected to be Spring 2023

Commercial organic fertilizer production expected to be fully operational by Summer 2023

 

Wrexham

Residents at Probation Approved Premises in Wrexham and Bangor have been informally growing food for donation to local Food Banks since 2018 as members  of the Incredible Edible movement https://www.incredibleedible.org.uk

With the endorsement of Incredible Edible and the support of Cwmpas https://cwmpas.coop  we have worked with this group to help them  formalise themselves into a new social enterprise which will continue to supply Food Banks with free, fresh seasonal fruit, veg and salads and which will also develop an organic fertilizer production facility to provide paid employment for Approved Premises residents when they move on to independent living – pathways to employment and food security through growing food and organic fertilizer production. See https://www.eginoemerging.org

Number of Approved Premises residents involved in producing the food = 5+ at any one time

Number of Food Bank beneficiaries = 500 + p.a.

Deliveries of food ongoing

Commercial organic fertilizer production fully operational by Spring 2023

Evidence to the APPG

Wednesday, 13th July 2022

One project development in June is that Dave Nicholson has formed a small consortium and is providing evidence to the APPG (All Parliamentary Group) regarding ending the need for  food bank. The roll of Awards For All in supporting the collection of evidence has been made and Dave is hoping that he will be going to Parliament in the Autumn to present the evidence directly to the MP’s on the APPG.

 

An extract of the summary is below. For a full copy of the evidence submitted please e-mail dave.tynan@nornir.co.uk

 

Extract of evidence:

 

EVIDENCE TO THE APPG ON ENDING THE NEED FOR FOOD BANKS INQUIRY

CASH OR FOOD? EXPLORING EFFECTIVE RESPONSES TO DESTITUTION

 

 

PAYBACK PATHWAYS TO COOPERATIVE FOOD PRODUCTION: ENDING THE NEED FOR FOOD BANKS

 

SUMMARY

 

We are giving the following evidence on behalf of a consortium of church-based food banks and alternative food-based providers in Hull*, together with similar consortia supported by Nornir social enterprise in other parts of the country. www.nornir.co.uk. Nornir’s work is part funded by the National Lottery Awards for All programme and both initiatives are supported by the HeartEdge National Development Team’s Commerce lead https://www.heartedge.org Both the Hull and Nornir initiatives are at varying stages of

 

  • transitioning food banks and other alternative food-based providers into food buying groups and cooperatives providing non surplus as well as surplus food for their service users and members.
  • collectively growing their own fresh seasonal fruit and veg for their service users and members.
  • collectively growing additional commercial  cash crops and other commercial value-added food products to generate an income for a cash grant system for participating food banks and other alternative food based providers to bulk buy their own supplies of non-surplus food and supplement the dwindling supplies of surplus food available to them.
  • staffing the food-growing initiatives with offenders subject to Community Payback unpaid work requirements and providing them with structured progression routes into paid employment and self employment in the wider food sector on successful completion of their unpaid work requirements.

It is our contention that this evolving model of food-based provision and low cost community food retail, supported by community cash-based grants, generated and distributed by the participating food buying groups and cooperatives, potentially provides a model for ending the need for food banks and emergency food aid for anyone who is a member, either individually or collectively of the food buying clubs and cooperatives concerned.

 

Dave Nicholson of HeartEdge and Nornir david.nicholson@smitf.org and Andy Dorton, Church of England Social Responsibility Officer for Hull andrew@dorton.karoo.co.uk would both be willing to give evidence at the inquiry’s evidence sessions in September and October.

 End:

Pathways Project Update - 2 May 2022

Tuesday, 3rd May 2022

PAYBACK PATHWAYS TO EMPLOYMENT AND FOOD SECURITY

PROGRESS REPORT 2nd MAY 2022

Project plans and developments as outlined in 21st March, 4th April and 18th April reports (above) remain in place and progressing  to plan.

Further scoping of similar initiatives and plans for similar complementary projects in Stockport, across Greater Manchester and beyond is continuing and their implications for the initial piloting of Payback Pathways and its future development are outlined below, together with further Action Points  for the Payback Pathways Project over the next reporting period, in addition to those carried over from the reports of 4th April and 18th April.

Trussell Trust and Community Payback

Trussell Trust https://www.trusselltrust.org the largest third sector Food Bank provider in the UK, is working with Fareshare and Greater Manchester Community Payback to set up a Food Bank in Oldham staffed 100% by Community Payback Workers under the supervision of a Probation CP Supervisor.

Trussell are also appointing Regional  Pantry Development Workers across the UK to set up Pantries as progression routes from emergency Food Bank provision. These Pantries will also be at least partially staffed by CP workers. All these new Food Banks and Pantries will be 100% reliant on surplus food and therefore likely to increase the pressure on Fareshare to keep up with rapidly increasing demand.

Funding bulk buy food supplies

As one response to this problem Fareshare in Greater Manchester are exploring the feasibility of establishing a fund to  bulk buy wholesale non-surplus food supplies to supplement dwindling supplies of surplus food in the same way as Foundations Stockport plan to do with the Payback Pathways project . It is not known yet how Fareshare plan to finance their new fund, whereas Foundations plan to finance theirs from the profits of the Payback Pathways social enterprises, as outlined in the project plan for the present project.

Church Action on Poverty have also established a ‘Friends of Your Local Pantry’ fund to do the same – bulk buy wholesale supplies for the Your Local Pantry network. This is financed entirely by charitable donations, but is not proving popular with  member Pantries as Church Action on Poverty take 25% of the fund to cover their admin costs.

There is interest in Wythenshawe in establishing Payback Pathways social enterprise(s) to finance school breakfast clubs in the area, starting with liquid fertilizer production to be retailed as part of a range of ‘Grow Your Own Veg’ Starter Kits, with all profits donated to local school breakfast clubs. This initiative would be on exactly the same lines as proposed in the Awards for All project for providing additional  funding for Stockport Pantries, but would be targeted at School Breakfast Club approaches to Food Security rather than Pantries.

This is seen as potentially an ‘Incredible Edible’ initiative https://www.incredibleedible.org.uk and is actively supported by Mike Kane MP, sponsor of the Incredible Edible ‘Community Right to Grow’ campaign and Member of Parliament for Wythenshawe and Sale East. Discussions are ongoing as to the feasibility of running  this initiative through Real Food Wythenshawe and the Wythenshawe Park Horticultural Centre https://www.realfoodwythenshawe.com/wythenshawe-park-horticultural-centre  It has also been suggested that this might form the pilot Payback Pathways social enterprise for the Awards for All Project rather than ‘starting from scratch’ with the Stockport Pantries in Stockport. This will be further explored during the next reporting period.

Action Point 1: Explore further with stakeholders whether Payback Pathways social enterprises’ profits should go to finance  Foundations Stockport’s Bulk Buy Fund (as in the original project plan) or go to Greater Manchester Fareshare’s Bulk Buy Fund for Foundations to ‘buy into’?

Discussions are ongoing with stakeholders about the destination of profits made by Payback Pathways social enterprises. It is understood this will be further discussed by the Foundations Stockport Board at their meeting on 10th May 2022.

The possibilities raised by the Wythenshawe initiative make this question somewhat superfluous if the project decides to ‘run with’ Wythenshawe rather than Stockport as the Payback Pathways social enterprises’ profits would go to local school Breakfast Clubs as the pathway to food security rather than to Pantries and/or their suppliers.

Action Point 1a: Explore feasibility of basing the Payback Pathways Awards for All Project social enterprise development in Wythenshawe rather than Stockport.

Community Payback and ‘Beyond the Food Bank and Building on the Pantry’

There are increasing numbers of Food Security initiatives across Greater Manchester and beyond which are

  • Using Community Payback Workers to staff their operations or thinking of doing so.
  • Seeking more sustainable ways of accessing surplus and non surplus food supplies for distribution to people in food poverty.

These initiatives can be loosely grouped together as going ‘Beyond the Food Bank and Building on the Pantry’.

Some examples from Greater Manchester and elsewhere include the following (this is an indicative rather than comprehensive list) All appear to face the same problems of how to access non-surplus food in order to supplement the dwindling supplies of surplus food available without raising prices/membership fees. Some are also at different stages of growing their own food for their own members/service users as well as for distribution through Food Banks and Pantries.

Many are based on more explicitly co-operative lines with greater degree of member/service user control and ownership than that offered by Food Banks and Pantries. All perhaps would further benefit from considering the Payback Pathways model. This could then potentially form the basis of a national roll-out once proof of concept has been achieved by the present project.

Examples include

Action Point 2: undertake a more comprehensive scoping exercise of ‘Beyond the Food Bank and Building on the Pantry’ initiatives across Greater Manchester and beyond.

Action Point 2b:- undertake a more comprehensive scoping exercise of funding and supply of surplus and non-surplus food to School Breakfast Clubs across Greater Manchester and beyond.

The more comprehensive scoping exercise is ongoing and will be reported on further in the next reporting period ending 16th  May 2022.

The scoping exercise is beginning to take a somewhat different turn with the advent of the Wythenshawe initiative potentially changing the focus of pathways to food security to funding for and direct supply of locally grown food for School Breakfast Clubs rather than solely on ‘Beyond the Food Bank and Building on the Pantry’ initiatives across Greater Manchester and beyond. This will be further reported on in the next reporting period ending 16th May 2022.

Action Point 3: undertake further feasibility work concerning the applicability and appetite for the Payback Pathways model of funding purchase of non-surplus food supplies for ‘Beyond the Food Bank and Building on the Pantry’ initiatives across Greater Manchester and beyond.

Action Point 3a:- undertake further feasibility work concerning the applicability and appetite for the Payback Pathways model of funding purchase of non-surplus food supplies for School Breakfast Club initiatives across Greater Manchester and beyond.

The appetite for the Payback Pathways model investigation is ongoing as an integral part of the scoping exercise and will be reported on further in the next reporting period ending 16th   May 2022.

Social Enterprises in the Payback Pathways Model

Scoping work concerning possible partners in the development of the three social enterprises identified in the last report has begun as the first stage in business planning.

The following have been identified and discussions are ongoing:-

Urban Mushrooms:- Manchester Mushroom Co-operative https://www.uk.coop/directory/myco-manchester-mushroom  Manchester Urban Diggers https://www.wearemud.org Manchester Cathedral Volition Community https://volitioncommunity.org

Juicing and Bottling:- Rooted in Hull https://www.rootedinhull.org.uk  Small Scale Bottling www.smallscalebottling.com

Action Point 4: continue scoping  and business planning with priority given to Liquid Fertilizer.

Scoping and business planning with Liquid Fertilizer as the priority is ongoing and will be reported on further in the next reporting period ending 16th  May 2022.

Pathways update 4 April 2022

This project is funded by the National Lottery

Wednesday, 6th April 2022

 

PAYBACK PATHWAYS TO EMPLOYMENT AND FOOD SECURITY

PROGRESS REPORT 4th APRIL 2022

Project plans and developments as outlined in 21st March report (above) remain in place and progressing to plan.

Further scoping of similar initiatives and plans for similar complementary projects in Stockport, across Greater Manchester and beyond is continuing and their implications for the initial piloting of Payback Pathways and its future development are outlined below, together with Action Points for the Payback Pathways Project over the next reporting period.

Trussell Trust and Community Payback

Trussell Trust https://www.trusselltrust.org the largest third sector Food Bank provider in the UK, is working with Fareshare and Greater Manchester Community Payback to set up a Food Bank in Oldham staffed 100% by Community Payback Workers under the supervision of a Probation CP Supervisor.

Trussell are also appointing Regional  Pantry Development Workers across the UK to set up Pantries as progression routes from emergency Food Bank provision. These Pantries will also be at least partially staffed by CP workers. All these new Food Banks and Pantries will be 100% reliant on surplus food and therefore likely to increase the pressure on Fareshare to keep up with rapidly increasing demand.

Funding bulk buy food supplies

As one response to this problem Fareshare in Greater Manchester are exploring the feasibility of establishing a fund to  bulk buy wholesale non-surplus food supplies to supplement dwindling supplies of surplus food in the same way as Foundations Stockport plan to do with the Payback Pathways project . It is not known yet how Fareshare plan to finance their new fund, whereas Foundations plan to finance theirs from the profits of the Payback Pathways social enterprises, as outlined in the project plan for the present project.

Church Action on Poverty have also established a ‘Friends of Your Local Pantry’ fund to do the same – bulk buy wholesale supplies for the Your Local Pantry network. This is financed entirely by charitable donations, but is not proving popular with  member Pantries as Church Action on Poverty take 25% of the fund to cover their admin costs.

Action Point 1: Explore further with stakeholders whether Payback Pathways social enterprises’ profits should go to finance  Foundations Stockport’s Bulk Buy Fund (as in the original project plan) or go to Greater Manchester Fareshare’s Bulk Buy Fund for Foundations to ‘buy into’?

Community Payback and ‘Beyond the Food Bank and Building on the Pantry’

There are increasing numbers of Food Security initiatives across Greater Manchester and beyond which are

  • Using Community Payback Workers to staff their operations or thinking of doing so.
  • Seeking more sustainable ways of accessing surplus and non surplus food supplies for distribution to people in food poverty.

These initiatives can be loosely grouped together as going ‘Beyond the Food Bank and Building on the Pantry’.

Some examples from Greater Manchester and elsewhere include the following (this is an indicative rather than comprehensive list) All appear to face the same problems of how to access non-surplus food in order to supplement the dwindling supplies of surplus food available without raising prices/membership fees.

Many are based on more explicitly co-operative lines with greater degree of member/service user control and ownership than that offered by Food Banks and Pantries. All perhaps would further benefit from considering the Payback Pathways model. This could then potentially form the basis of a national roll-out once proof of concept has been achieved by the present project.

Examples include

Action Point 2: undertake a more comprehensive scoping exercise of ‘Beyond the Food Bank and Building on the Pantry’ initiatives across Greater Manchester and beyond.

Action Point 3: undertake further feasibility work concerning the applicability and appetite for the Payback Pathways model of funding purchase of non-surplus food supplies for ‘Beyond the Food Bank and Building on the Pantry’ initiatives across Greater Manchester and beyond.

 

Social Enterprises in the Payback Pathways Model

Scoping work concerning possible partners in the development of the three social enterprises identified in the last report has begun as the first stage in business planning.

The following have been identified and discussions are ongoing:-

Liquid Fertilizer:- Incredible Edible CiC  https://www.incredibleedible.org.uk . NW Prisons Greener on the Outside of Prison (GOOP) project https://www.uclan.ac.uk/research/activity/greener-on-the-outside-for-prisons

Urban Mushrooms:- Manchester Mushroom Co-operative https://www.uk.coop/directory/myco-manchester-mushroom  Manchester Urban Diggers https://www.wearemud.org

Juicing and Bottling:- Rooted in Hull https://www.rootedinhull.org.uk  Small Scale Bottling www.smallscalebottling.com

Action Point 4: continue scoping  and business planning with priority given to Liquid Fertilizer.

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