Waterlooville Community Pantry at Growing Places

Growing Places Community Pantry provides sustainable, and longer-term options for people facing food insecurities with the aim of reducing disadvantaged local people’s reliance on the food banks, offering alternative ways of meeting needs by helping people to make health food choices in our pantry.  Offering  support to families suffering from food poverty, helping them feel less reliant on handouts as they contribute towards their shop at the pantry.

Without the Pantry, many families will go hungry this winter!

WE NEED YOUR HELP!

Growing Places Pantry offers nutritional cupboard staples and good quality fresh produce which is more accessible as well as affordable, providing food items  for families  at a set fee, as well as massively reducing food waste of produce in our community. We also provide ideas of how families and the community can use items to make different and nutritious meals at a highly subsidised rate.  

At Growing Places we have over 450 hungry families who have signed up to the community pantry all have access to cupboard staples, fresh goods, toiletries, baby items and pet food. It is well known that pets are often rehomed when times are difficult, we want to see this does not happen.

For £5 our members receive at least £20 worth of food each week, which also reduces the huge impact of food price increases. 

We desperately need to support the demand we currently have - Please help by supporting us to purchase more food to support the high demand we currently have.

Those that visit us at our during our opening times of the 4 sessions per week, not only can access our larder but also our second chance clothes offer where we provide recycled clothes and baby items.  Debbie, a customer mentioned that she was a full-time carer for her disabled child so had to give up her full-time job and found the pantry to be invaluable to help feed her family.  She also mentioned that as her child was not able to attend schooling more than 2 hours a day due her specific needs, the pantry was the only means of adult communication she would have that day, so she feels the service offered was a precious one. 

So far this year we have provided 1529 bags of shopping to members, please help us reach the 2000 target, supporting families local to the Havant and Waterlooville area! 

In December to March we expect to gain more members as fuel poverty and financial insecurities rise, so would like to reach more community members, without ever turning anyone away, due to lack of food. 

This pantry is more than just a food hub, we support people not only feed their families but also with a pre-loved clothes drive, providing  bedding, clothing, warm winter coats, toiletries, as well as signposting people to access legal and financial advice, at times of hardship and uncertainty.  We also support families/individuals to access funds to help them gain small electrical items like air fryers and slow cookers, reducing energy they require to cook healthy meals and lowering utility bills. 

 Your donation to support our pantry will help us feed the growing need of local families and support more local people who currently are concerned how they may feed their families.