COMMUNITY: Caring Cooks delivers meals to islanders in need

Monday 23 March 2020

A local charity, which provides nutritious food to families across the island, is expanding its weekly meal service to all islanders in need to ensure no one goes without, during the covid-19 pandemic.

Caring Cook’s ‘Weekly Meal Service’, which normally operates one day a week, will be running six days each week, with up to 300 meals cooked every day for islanders who are sick, isolated, in financial crisis or facing other challenges.

The charity was founded with this free service at its core in 2014. The service normally benefits 30 adults and children, whose families struggle either financially or as a result of illness, each week, and allows families to sit down at least once a week to share a nutritious and home-made two-course meal.

From Thursday, the service will be extended to take the form of a daily Outreach Programme to help a wider group of local residents. 

Video: Melissa Nobrega's Covid-19 appeal.

The expanded service will run six days a week, with the team prepping up to 300 meals a day from the charity’s main kitchen. If demand grows, Caring Cooks are also in talks to take over vacant kitchens and scale their model even further.

“Given the anticipated progression of the Covid-19 outbreak in Jersey, it is very likely we will begin to see fewer people being able to access nutritious food every day, which is very worrying at a time when nutritious food is critical to the building of immunity and the fighting of the Virus,” the charity’s CEO, Melissa Nobrega said.

“Caring Cooks believes the health and wellbeing of the Island is everyone’s responsibility.  There is, therefore, no better time than now to come together and help vulnerable and isolated islanders." 

“We are going back to our roots,” Ms Nobrega told Express. “This is what started the charity five years ago.”

Ms Nobrega said scaling up the service would not have been possible if the Government hadn’t agreed to redirect staff costs from the school meal service so that they can cook the meals. 

Islanders have also supported the initiative by donating over £9,000 to buy food in less than a day.

“We are only a small charity, we do not hold a lot of money on our accounts,” Ms Nobrega explained. “Finances were the main thing; we needed more money to make meals for 12 weeks. The more money we raise, the more meals we can make and deliver.”

To identify who will benefit from the service, Caring Cooks will be working with their existing referrers, schools and other agencies. 

They are also collaborating with the Salvation Army and Family Nursing and Home Care to add nappies and other items to the delivery network for those families who need them. 

Pictured: Islanders keen to help others are invited to register on volunteer.je.

The charity is also working with Volunteer.je to find a team of volunteers to deliver the freshly cooked meals, using non-contact methods to protect the safety of all involved. Distribution points will be set up at key locations across the island and all delivery drivers will be DBS checked in line with the charity’s policies.   

It comes as the government launches a major drive for volunteers this morning.

A working group for volunteering has now been set up, and is led by Malcom Ferey, the Chief Executive of Citizen’s Advice Jersey.

Anyone wanting to volunteer during the coronavirus pandemic is being urged to register with their skills, qualifications and availability on volunteer.je. 

Volunteers will receive a same-day acknowledgement that their details have been registered and will then be contacted as soon as they are matched to a community need. Islanders can also register to volunteer via their Parish Hall.

Charities and community organisations who additional volunteers to help deliver their services, are also invited to add roles on the site volunteer.je or call the helpline on 445566.

“It is so encouraging to see the energy and enthusiasm from members of the public offering to support vulnerable Islanders,” Deputy Judy Martin, the Minister for Social Security, said. “We are lucky to have so many people willing to give up their time to help others. By coordinating efforts, we can ensure that the right help reaches the right people, when they need it.” 

You can make a donation to Caring Cooks’ crowdfunding page here. 

Islanders who need help should call the Government helpline on 445566 or contact their Parish Hall, where they will be directed to the support they need.