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PROMOTING OPPORTUNITY
Community Shop
Making a real difference There are so many stories to tell about how Community Shop helps its members. Here are just two examples… Natalie joined Community Shop at a point in her life when she didn’t know what she wanted to do. She says: “Community Shop was great and gave me the help and support I needed to understand that I could make a fresh start.
Community Shop Kirkdale.
Social enterprise Community Shop, part of Company Shop Group, is delighted to have won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the Promoting Opportunity category. The award recognises the deep social impact Community Shop makes, delivering a sustainable support model that helps to break long-term dependence on food aid and provide life- changing training and development programmes. Winning the award is down to the hard work, dedication and continual innovation of the Community Shop team, the organisations who support it every day, and its generous, long- standing industry partners whose surplus food donations have helped it achieve so much, including: • Supporting a total of 7,882 families across England • Providing over 30 million meals and helping members to reconnect with food • Creating over 20,000 meals to feed families and over 8,000 lunches for children through the Healthy Holidays programme • Helping 642 members back into employment, and 809 into further education
• Engaging 7,120 people with Community Shop’s personal development programmes
Natalie is now studying nursing and midwifery at college.
ESSENTIAL SUPPORT NETWORK The social impact Community Shop has on communities is varied, with support being offered to members through three interconnected spaces – Community Store, Community Hub and Community Kitchen. Each Community Shop sells good quality donated surplus products at deeply discounted prices. For those on the cusp of food poverty, this vital access helps feed families whilst making sure perfectly good food doesn’t go to waste. Speaking about the social impact, Natalie Brown, Head of Community Shop, says: “Everything we do is powered by donations of surplus stock from our amazing partners. As well as providing vital access to deeply discounted food, we deliver life-changing training and personal development programmes through our Community Hubs, including health and well- being, financial affairs and community leadership. We’re very proud to support our members back into education and employment, helping them become the best version of themselves.” Community Shop has ambitious plans to expand its network to allow it to support even more people with vital food access, and create a platform to promote opportunities and deliver positive change for generations to come. COMMUNITY SHOP Wentworth Way, Wentworth Industrial Estate, Tankersley, Barnsley, South Yorkshire S75 3DH Tel: 01226 747121 • hello@community-shop.co.uk www.companyshopgroup.co.uk/communityshop @CommunityShops communityshopscic
“I joined Kick Start and it’s made a massive difference for me and I’m now studying on a nursing and midwifery course. The change to my life has been dramatic and I want to thank Community Shop for their help and support.”
Terry found herself having to start all over again, and with a new baby. She says: “Community Shop changed my life. The shop, the staff, the hub, it just changed everything for me. It helped me rebuild my confidence, and when a job opportunity came up at Community Shop I had to apply. I’m happy to say that I was successful, and I love working here.”
Terry works in Community Shop Halton.
Community Shop members have access to a wide range of products.
Queen’s Awards Magazine 2021
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