A community cookery school has paused classes and launched an emergency crowd-funder for the borough’s most vulnerable residents.
Made In Hackney’s “We Need Each Other Now” project has raised almost £20,000 since its launch on Tuesday. The project aims to set up a free food delivery service for at-risk residents during the coronavirus crisis.
The initiative hopes to raise £30,000 to support the project, which will see the plant-based cooking school’s kitchen and chefs repurposed to cook and deliver meals by bicycle to housebound locals.
In a statement, Made in Hackney said: “As the Covid-19 situation began to escalate last week the kitchen team were horrified to realise they would need to cancel all their classes, community feasts and fundraising events. Not only is this disastrous for the charity’s future but also for the vulnerable people who rely on its services.
“The team banded together to hatch a plan to empower the cookery school to serve at risk community members such as the elderly, people with health problems and people who are seeing their livelihoods collapse- with free nourishing food delivered direct to their door via a non-contact bicycle courier service.”
Sarah Bentley, Made in Hackney’s founder, said: “This is an emergency. There is a very real risk of our most vulnerable community members going hungry and becoming extremely isolated.
“If we can’t teach cookery classes, then we need to get nourishing food delivered to the people who need it most another way.”
Couriers delivering food to residents will also check to see how people are coping and if they need any extra support.
The organisation’s ambitious plans aim to provide food within Hackney and possibly neighbouring boroughs.
To support their crowdfunding campaign, go to: www.crowdfunder.co.uk/made-in-hackney-4
Loo Roll Lockdown
Coronavirus stockpiling has hit London Fields, with opportunists stealing toilet roll and soap from the park’s public toilets. As a result, the Council has put loo roll on lockdown – by chaining toilet rolls to the holders in bathroom stalls.
Aled Richards, Hackney Council’s director of public realm, said: “Due to the repeated thefts of toilet roll and soap from some parks’ toilets, we have placed notices in all parks warning people to respect these community facilities.
“Sadly, the selfish acts of a few people are threatening facilities that allow everyone to wash their hands. We will seek to prosecute anyone we find stealing from toilets.”
A sign in the toilets informs users that “if toilet paper and soap continues to be removed as soon as it is replenished, we will be forced to close the park toilets.”
Hackney Council is taking no chances with the toilet paper situation in the public loos at London Fields #COVID?19 pic.twitter.com/CTsmISR2fT
— Art Sejdiu (@ArtySej) March 15, 2020
