An award-winning enterprise known as the UK’s first social supermarket is to open in Hull.
Community Shop will open in December within North Bransholme Community Centre, as part of Hull City Council’s work with community centres across the city to address the need for investment and enhance the visibility of what they can offer.
Community Shop sells good quality surplus food products at deeply discounted prices to its members from the nearby area, including a range which sees fruit, vegetables and bread on offer for only 20p.
The branch at North Bransholme will also offer a Community Hub and a Community Kitchen, which will include a café serving home-cooked meals, with kids eating for free every day.
The Leader of Hull City Council, Councillor Mike Ross, said: “We’re really pleased to be able to help Community Shop open in our city.
“The great work they do helps people out with cost of living pressures, but they also make sure that things that might otherwise go to waste can be bought at a really low price.
“We recognise that for some residents in Hull there is a real challenge in accessing affordable food, which is why helping tackle this issue is one of the priorities in the city’s Food Strategy, which also helps us in our aim for a healthier and fairer Hull, an ambition of the Community Plan.
“The Community Hub will offer support and development to allow members from the nearby area to build new skills, and their Community Kitchen will provide meals cooked by local people for local people.
“As a Council, we’re doing as much as we can to help people tackle rising prices, so initiatives like this are a great asset.”
The new facility has been achieved with investment from Community Shop CiC and with the support of the Paul Ingle Boxing Academy, with whom Community Shop will share North Bransholme Community Centre.
A full refurbishment is progress, with the Academy re-opening with a new look in December.
12 jobs for local people are expected to be created.
Surplus food products available at Community Shop are donated by food industry partners, and are always in-date and safe to consume.
They may have become surplus due to things such as mislabelling, seasonal packaging or overstocking.
The Executive Chairman of Community Shop, Gary Stott, said: “For the past 12 years, Community Shop has not only provided our members with access to deeply discounted food and household products, but has also provided life-changing programmes and holistic support so that our members develop their own capabilities and feel empowered to deliver a positive future for themselves.
“We’re delighted to continue our mission, building stronger individuals and more confident communities, and we look forward to welcoming families from the across the North Bransholme community into their new store later this year.”
The store operates on a free membership basis and is open to those on means-tested benefits who live in the nearby local area.
For more information, visit www.companyshop.co.uk/community-shop.
For more information on Cost of Living help, visit Cost of Living | Hull.
For more information about the network of Community Centres in Hull, visit Community Centres, Hull.
For more information about Hull’s Food Strategy, visit Hull Food Strategy.
