The sanctuary Outreach Hub

Aim: We opened a community outreach hub in April 2023 to help provide a warm space, low-cost meals and refreshments for the community.

We opened a community outreach hub in April 2023 to help provide a warm space for the community, low-cost meals and refreshments, and a space for other organisations to reach out to the community. We have created links with the Citizens Advice Bureau and Christians Against Poverty. We also use the space to run Morecambe Pantry which serves over 300 families in the Lancaster district, providing them with good, nutritious food for a small membership fee. We hope in the future to be able to offer training and re-skilling opportunities as well as cooking classes to teach families to make a small budget to go further without compromising its nutritional content.

Our community outreach hub significantly impacts the lives of those who access it. Our project provides a place for people to connect, access support, and learn new skills. It also provides practical support to those struggling with costs, such as free hot meals, heating bills and laundry. By investing in our project, you will be helping to combat social isolation and poverty in our community.

Our area of Morecambe is among the top 3% of most income-deprived parishes in England, with 19% of working-age adults experiencing income deprivation and 27% having no academic, vocational, or professional qualifications.

 Over the last year, we have seen over 8,000 customers in our facility.

Morecambe Pantry is a food redistribution and outreach project serving the local parish of Morecambe Parish Church using food redistribution organisations such as FareShare and partnering with local businesses. We offer members a large range of affordable food for a membership fee, enabling us to cover most of our expenses.

During the last year, 345 families have used our pantry and visited 3842 times. 19% of working-age adults and 27% of pensioners experience income deprivation, and 24% of children live in an income-deprived household within our parish. 

53% of our customers are Households with Children, 21% are Households with pensioners, and 5% are Households with Disabled persons. Another 16% of households self-selected as having people from multiple categories.

Many customers come to us with a wide range of social or health issues, and we provide a space to talk and be listened to thoughtfully and sensitively. We have had some excellent feedback on our welcoming, judgment-free staff and volunteers.

Each visit usually equals between £20 and £30 if bought in the supermarket. This helps community members by providing food for those in financial difficulties. We obtain food that would otherwise be sent to landfills, which supports our secondary aim of being environmentally conscious.

Funding method

Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 24th August 2025 at 8:30pm