Clapham Park to get weekly free food canteen to combat cost-of-living crisis

A weekly free food canteen will be set up in a new housing development to help the community in the cost-of-living crisis.

The canteen at the new Clapham Park development at 116 King’s Avenue will offer hot healthy food every Wednesday at 1pm.

The developers, Countryside Partnerships and Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing, have enlisted local charity Be Enriched to offer the warm space and a meal in the local community centre, Clapham Park Cube.

Alongside this, Be Enriched is working to co-ordinate its Food Bus – the first converted double-decker bus of its kind – to stop outside the Clapham Park Cube on Friday mornings.

The bus will offer low-cost groceries, cupboard items and more, while the café on the top deck will provide a space to have a coffee and catch up with friends. The start date for this is currently being confirmed.

The programme is expected to last a year.

Countryside and MTVH are Joint Venture partners in the delivery of the £1bn regeneration scheme at Clapham Park.

The partnership will be supplemented by work with Brixton People’s Kitchen, the social enterprise sister of Be Enriched, to also deliver a weekly community food pantry and café which will provide affordable food for the community and support residents to reduce their outgoings. 

There will also be wraparound services integrated with the canteen and café to help meet local needs.

Some of the partners will include Age UK, Love London Working and the Lambeth benefits support team.

Local volunteers will also be recruited and trained so that they have the opportunity to play an active part in the delivery of the project and help the wider community.

Once complete, the Clapham Park regeneration scheme will deliver at least 2,482 homes for Lambeth council across 17 sites, of which 53 per cent will be affordable. 

Pictured top: The Be Enriched team at Clapham Park (Picture: Be Enriched)