The Project
Debenham Pantry is run by the St Mary Magdalene Church and opened in 2022 in response to a need in the community for food provision and to reduce food waste locally. The church have marketed the pantry as a way of reducing food waste as opposed to just for those who cannot afford food in order to reduce stigma, as well as encouraging people to come along for the social aspect at their café as well.
The pantry is open to everyone with no questions asked. A hessian bag is provided to each service user and they must bring this bag with them each time they come to the pantry. This ensures that people are not able to fill large bags or take significantly larger quantities of food than anyone else. It costs individuals £3.50 to fill their bag which contributes to the cost of sourcing food, the cost of the bags and heating/lighting in the church.
Food is sourced mainly through donations and FareShare. Donations are received from the local Tesco and Co-op. Any food that is close to date or on date is put together at the end of the line of tables and users can take as much of this as they would like. If any of this food is left when the pantry closes, it is left in the church porch for anyone who would like it. The pantry sometimes also receives donations of bunches of flowers from Tesco that are beyond their best. If they are low on certain staple items such as potatoes and pasta, these will be bought in to make sure that users have food that they can use as a base for a variety of meals. They will also buy products such as sanitary items to ensure equal access to these types of necessities. The cost of these is covered by grants and by the money that is received through the café donations and £3.50 cost.
Volunteers
There are approximately 20 volunteers involved across the pantry and the café who work on a rota basis. All volunteers have undertaken safeguarding training to ensure they are equipped to recognise when someone may be in need of further support and know when to pass on concerns.
The Process
The church porch is open for users to wait in prior to the opening of the parish pantry. Seating is available in the porch and during the winter months blankets are also provided to keep people warm while they wait.
The pantry opens at 10am and users are greeted at the door where they pay their £3.50. If they are new to the pantry they are also provided with a hessian bag.
Food is laid out on tables down the centre aisle of the church where it is split into categories. Some have signs stating the number of items from a category that they can have. This is also determined by how much of a food type they have (for example, if there is a limited number of bags of pasta or sauces these will be limited to 1 per person).
Fresh food is also available (e.g. vegetables, fruit, bread), some of these are bagged up so that each individual takes a single bag if quantity of these items is limited.
Some items the pantry has a large quantity of as they cannot predict what they will get donated (for example, tins of mushy peas). In this case, users can take as many of these as they would like to.
Parish Café
In addition to the pantry, the church also runs a café in Dove Cottage next to the church for those using the pantry, volunteers and local people. The café runs on a donation basis and provides hot drinks and homemade cakes. The café gives users of the pantry the opportunity to talk to volunteers, make connections with one another and provides support for those who struggle with isolation and loneliness.
