CROOKSTON COMMUNITY GROUP SCIO 

We are a local charity in Glasgow in need of three community fridges and freezers to distribute fresh fruit, vegetables, and meat at an affordable price.

The group will use the funds to purchase tables and chairs for their four community venues located in Crookston Bellahouston and Ibrox.

Grant to contribute to core costs.

over three years as unrestricted continuation funding for a multi-cultural charity providing food, clubs and classes and community involvement opportunities in disadvantaged areas of Glasgow

We would like to distribute food, toiletries, toys, clothing and bedding to those facing poverty.

over one year as additional funding towards rent and core costs for a Glasgow community food and support charity

as an additional grant to support staff, volunteer and trustee wellbeing, to assist the organisation deliver its charitable purpose more effectively

To contribute to the continued food parcel provision in Glasgow, providing food for families suffering from food insecurity, will also cover volunteer expenses while delivery these parcels.

to contribute towards food essentials for people experiencing food poverty.

as emergency funding to provide food and other essentials for people in need in Crookston, Glasgow, during the coronavirus crisis

This group will use the funding to continue providing food and essential items for vulnerable and isolated families in Glasgow during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Detailed description not provided.

To purchase additional food supplies to help meet growing demand for people in Crookston, Greater Glasgow.

WHAT: We will provide a 3-Tier Approach to Combat the Impact of the Welfare Reform Tier 1) Drop-in Help Desk Tier 2) 121 Meetings Tier 3) Group Workshops HOW: We will employ & train a ....more

WHAT: We will provide a 3-Tier Approach to Combat the Impact of the Welfare Reform Tier 1) Drop-in Help Desk Tier 2) 121 Meetings Tier 3) Group Workshops HOW: We will employ & train a "Welfare Reform Advisor" to deliver this project. This person will be allocated 2 dedicated volunteers to provide assistance Training undertaken by the Advisor will be: • Introduction to Welfare Rights • Income Maximisation for Families • PIP and Attendance Allowance • Challenging PIP Decisions • Universal Credit – Claimant Responsibilities & Sanctions • Universal Credit – For People with Ill Health & Disabilities And provided by CPAG. TIER 1) Drop-in Help Desk – 2 set hours per week 30 mins will be allocated per session: 4 people per week x 32 weeks = 128 service users ( realistically this could be 100 due to times running over) TIER 2) 121 Meetings – 2 set hours per week It is estimated that 35 of those attending the drop-in desk will need additional 121 assistance, such as: • Providing advice to prevent sanctions • Checking & verifying eligibility • Maximising income • Providing advice on budget planning & debt problems • Accompanying to sanction & other meetings • Signposting to our partners & making introductions 2hrs per week x 32 weeks = 35 service users TIER 3) Group Workshops – 2 set hours per week for a 4-week block with 4 blocks These groups will be kept to a maximum of 10 attendees with some attending all Workshops and some attending individual Workshops depending upon their needs. 10 attendees x 4 weeks = 40 people x 4 blocks = 160 service users Some service users will overlap therefore we estimate we will reach 125 unique individuals Week 1: Family Benefits Workshop • Grants, Child Benefit & Universal Credit • Financial help available from pregnancy to starting school • Financial help for those with school age children • Help with childcare costs • Other support available, including for families still getting tax credits • Q&A Session Week 2: Universal Credit Workshop – How to Make Claims • Universal Credit - help make effective claims, work out entitlement and advise on payments • Q&A Session Week 3: Universal Credit Workshop – Work & Benefits • Universal Credit and Work – how work-related requirements and sanctions operate inc those with a health condition or disability • Other Working-Age Benefits • Q&A Session Week 4: PIP & Attendance Allowance • Who is Entitled to PIP • Who is Entitled to AA • How to Claim • Q&A Session WHY: 1) Formal Food Bank Referral Questionnaires & Casual Conversations: We continue to witness how a person's life experience is heavily influenced by social & economic status resulting in erratic & poor decisions being made which quickly spiral to what then feels out of control. The impact of poverty experienced due to the Welfare Reform is the Number 1 reason identified from our service users. Our service users are very vulnerable, their life experience and circumstance have found them in desperate need for a helping hand due to: - low wages; high unemployment rates; families with several generations out of work; few local work opportunities; young people lacking a work ethos; low educational achievement - lack of understanding on how to budget; high debt levels; reduced payments; delays in payments; and sanctions - lack of awareness or inability to access help due to language barriers, anxiety, lack of confidence, lack of knowledge etc. Adults living in poverty focus on short-term survival, their decision-making ability is rushed and their attention span narrowed, leading to erratic decision makings. Although stated within the "Glasgow Financial Inclusion Strategy 2020 – 2025" that those most effected by the welfare reform are single parents & the BME community and although a high number of our service users fall into this category, we have also identified that: i) Poverty is hereditary to many who do not know how to or can't break the cycle ii) Some have found themselves in debt due to long term illness (eg cancer) or they/their loved one has a long term disability and iii) Adults retiring without adequate pension and no knowledge of the benefits system with many beginning with a short-term financial issue which then snowballed rapidly to crisis point. Adults living in poverty are less confident in their ability to succeed, leading to decreased personal attainment and ill health due to lack of food, depression and anxiety. Negative self-stereo typing is common, believing the media stereotyping that they are fundamentally flawed, with any achievements tempered by lack of confidence and for many self-loathing resulting in social isolation. All this can be exasperated for the BME and Refugee communities with language barriers, faith and dietary restrictions. Child poverty leads to various negative consequences, including weight & height deficiency, low self-esteem, which is a risk factor for mental illness, suicide or poor academic achievement. Our children should have equal rights to obtain the type of diet, participate in activities, opportunities and living conditions that their peers have. 2) CAB - Welfare Reform Officer Since October, CAB have provided a Welfare Reforms Officer to our premises every 2nd Thursday due to the demand from our service users. We arrange for 4 service users to meet with him for a 121 on every visit – the diary is full to the end of January and we have no guarantee that he would be able to return from February onwards. 3) CCG Development Day (attended by Service Users, Volunteers, Staff, Partners & Trustees) On the 20 November, the Impact of the Welfare Reform repeatedly became the topic of conversation and after some brainstorming incorporating the issues where most service users sought help from us and our partners, the 3-Tier Project was drafted. http://myccgblog.wixsite.com/blog/single-post/2019/11/20/Development-Day We know that this project will have a positive impact not only on improving the financial benefits of our service users but their mental and emotional well-being too. We can make a positive impact in breaking the cycle. All will be encouraged to take part in any of our services that could be beneficial to them eg social activities, language classes and the Independence from Foodbank Project (currently funded until 2022 by the Scottish Government) WHO: • A local community individual will receive a contract and will receive invaluable training to become our "Welfare Reform Advisor". • A group of 2 volunteers will be trained by our Welfare Reform Advisor sharing their knowledge obtained from the training courses. These volunteers will then rotate throughout each Tier to help our Welfare Reform Advisor. These volunteers could then go on to further education and / or employment in this field and / or continue to support our service users as volunteers on completion of this project. • Estimated 125 different services users, from age 16+ who are experiencing poverty and social exclusion due to the welfare reform including those lacking awareness or inability to access help. The knowledge and help received will have a domino effect on their dependents and own individual health (financial & emotional). WHERE: All 3 Tiers will take place within Crookston Community Centre (located in Beltrees Road, SIMD stats show Education & Skills ranked as 1, Income, Health, Unemployment & Crime ranked as 2, with Housing at 3). Our service users live within some of the most socially and financially deprived areas including Greater Pollok, Govan, Linn, Newlands / Auldburn, Cardonald, Pollokshields, Langside and Southside Central and we have now branched out due to demand to Dunterlie, East Renfrewshire – we work within many areas within the most deprived 5% on the SIMD. As many of our service users seek support from and are signposted by organisations with branches throughout Glasgow eg. Money Matters, Turning Point, Glasgow Housing Association & Citizens Advice this in-turn has increased the number of individuals approaching us, the needs of the individuals and the geographical spread. Current Services: Throughout the years, our activities & services grow as needs are identified and continue to evolve to meet ever-changing hardships, necessities and currently now include: - Foodshare Drop-in Centre (at our Community Centre, Crookston bridging with Pollok) - Foodshare on Wheels inc emergency parcels (Glasgow Wide and Dunterlie– we have 2 vans) - Foodshare Pop-Ups (Glasgow Wide & Dunterlie) Foodshare includes Food, Toiletries, Toys, Furniture, Clothing and Bedding ie. all hygiene and household necessities etc. Every Wednesday we offer a drop-in service free Sanitary products. Every Wednesday we sell bags of groceries worth between £25/ £30 for £3.50 to help reduce stigma and help with household budgeting. - Children's School Holiday Lunches (local children receive a healthy lunch daily throughout school holidays, funded by Cash for Kids & Glasgow City Council) - Independence from Foodbanks (helps transition frequent users away from their reliance on Foodbanks, funded by the Scottish Government) - Get Yourself Connected (basic IT skills for employment and other economic outcomes) - Adult & Children language classes (4 languages) - Youth Games & Movie Club - Thursday Cook n Chat (cooking & eating together, doing arts & crafts, guest speakers eg Money Matters etc) - General Drop-in / Advocacy Service - Volunteering, Training & Work Placement opportunities. - Multi-Culture Fun Days - Local MP Chris Stevens Surgery every 2nd Friday - Energy Scotland every 2nd Wednesday to offer Fuel Poverty advice - Money Matter, Turning Point & Citizens Advice (alternate) every Thursday to offer general advice Current Partnerships: Food donated by: Aldi, Fare Share, Locavore, Tesco Silverburn, Tesco Barrhead, Asda Mearns, Greggs, Co-op, Eurasia, Glasgow Markets, One stop Shop , Key store Paisley, Local Schools & football teams e.g. Pollok FC, Beith FC, Celtic FC & Rangers FC. Referrals made by: Money Matters, Citizens Advice, Various Medical Practices, Housing & Social Work Departments, Central Mosque, City Mission, Local Councillors & MPs, Turning Point Scotland, Rossdale Housing, Glasgow City Council, Flexible Homelessness, Women's Aid, various Social Work Departments, Learn Direct, Leverndale Hospital, Loretto Care, North East GAMH, Pollok Social Work 80/20 Initiative, SACRO, SAMH, Scottish Prison service, DWP Centre, Urban Roots, Wheatley Group, Woman's Aid & YPeople, Catch Scotland Ltd., Migrant Help UK, Serco UK & Europe, People Plus, Children 1st,Brittish Red Cross, Action for Children, Merry-Go-Round Glasgow, Unity Centre Glasgow, Apex Scotland, Includem, Shelter Scotland, Trussell Trust.

We want to buy a van to provide food to more disadvantaged people in Glasgow.

Salary Costs of a Community Development Officer

over three years as core funding for a local community food and support charity in Crookston, on the outskirts of Glasgow

My Foodshare Heroes

This group will use the funding to cover rent costs of an unused unit which has been transformed into a catering kitchen and store room.

purchase of a van for a charity which works with disadvantaged minority communities in Glasgow

Detailed information not yet available.

WHAT we will be doing: We would like to increase our Community Development Officer's hours to enable her to expand and oversee our "Community Kitchen" Project which encompasses the ....more

WHAT we will be doing: We would like to increase our Community Development Officer's hours to enable her to expand and oversee our "Community Kitchen" Project which encompasses the following sub-projects: • "Independence from Foodbanks" – helps transition Service Users away from their reliance on foodbanks by teaching affordable healthy & nutritional recipes, budgeting, shopping, cooking and afterwards all sitting down and eating together. Guest Speakers will be invited to attend to have a 30 mins Q&A session eg. Money Matters, CAB, Turning Point, DWP & Learn Direct, Glasgow College, Scottish Poverty Network, Inclusion Scotland, Migrant Help etc. • "School Holiday Lunch Club" - local children will receive a healthy lunch daily throughout school holidays and includes 2 trips eg. to World Buffet Restaurant, Cinema, Outdoor Adventure Playground etc • "Fresh Food Express" - increase the amount and variety of food (including hot) that we can deliver via our Foodshare platforms (listed below), by being able to prepare & cook food from scratch with fresh ingredients (all donated), therefore providing a better balanced, more varied and healthier choice for our service users. - Foodshare Drop-in Centre - Foodshare on Wheels inc emergency parcels - Foodshare Pop-Ups CCG Foodshare Services - provide a minimum of 100 food parcels per week – each food parcel consists of 3-days food per person per household. From our questionnaires / referrals – it is calculated that we reach 600+ people per week. NB. we have changed the word Foodbanks to Foodshare to reduce stigma. HOW we're going to do it: • "Independence from Foodbanks" Run 4 week blocks with 6 participants in attendance per block x 8 blocks p/a – 192 different individuals • "School Holiday Lunch Club" Run 3 x per annum (Christmas, Easter, Summer) with 2 meal settings per day (Mon-Fri) – 50 children at each setting - 100 children (some new, some attending all) • "Fresh Food Express" Train a minimum of 20 "Independence from Foodbanks" participants to achieve accredited REHIS Food Handling certificates to enable them to volunteer to prepare & cook for our Foodshare Platforms and "School Holiday Lunch Club". Distribute 3800 freshly prepared meals throughout Glasgow & East Renfrewshire. 100 meals per week prepared & cooked within Crookston's Community Kitchen by the above volunteers x 38 weeks = 3800 Our current partners & referral organisations are: Action For Children; Citiziens Advice; Various Medical Practices, Housing & Social Work Departments, Central Mosque, City Mission, Local Councillors & MPs, Epic 360, Glasgow City Council, Flexible Homelessness, Women's Aid, Hamesh Allen Centre, Various Social Work Departments, Learn Direct, Leverndale Hospital, Loretto Care, Money Matters, North East GAMH, Pollok Social Work & 80/20 Initiative, SACRO, SAMH, Scottish Prison Service, Job Centres, Sidestep Intervention, Turning Point, Urban Roots, Wheatley Group, Woman's Aid, YPeople. Where necessary, we will identify any additional support needed for our services users (from us or our partners) and refer as required (we make introduction & follow up, we don't just signpost!) Many of these organisations have service users throughout Glasgow and East Renfrewshire eg Money Matters, Glasgow Housing Association, Turning Point (to name a few, it's a long list!) and over the past year during meetings, consultations and attending forums, the increasing need and the wider geographical spread became more and more apparent and urgent. Our partners recommend our services to their service users and we have now found ourselves in the position of delivering donations throughout the whole of Glasgow & East Renfrewshire - almost half (47.3%) of Glasgow's residents - 283,000 people - reside in the 20% of most deprived areas in Scotland. Food is donated to us by: FareShare, Diamond Fruits, Tesco Silverburn, Tesco Barrhead, Waitrose, Mearns, Greggs, Co-op, Morrisons Cardonald, Eurasia, Glasgow Markets, Sainsbury's, Local Shops & occasional eg schools & Celtic Park WHY we want to do it: Our Experience: With myself, husband and children experiencing homelessness, we know the struggles, humiliation and devastation that is felt when you feel alone, hungry and with nowhere to turn. CCG was founded by people who have experienced real life hardships, many of our volunteers are ex-service users determined to give back – we all have our own personal stories which enables us to connect, communicate and understand our service users. We have seen how a person's life experience is heavily influenced by social & economic status resulting in erratic & poor decisions being made, quickly spiralling to what they then feel is outwith their control. For the past 7 years, we have realised that absolutely nothing breaks social, cultural or language barriers faster than food. We built community through food eg Samosa Fun Days (1,500 regularly attend) and began providing snacks and meals for those who accessed our centre-based services. We then found ourselves providing food to those who were hungry. We then built partnerships with local food suppliers (high street & wholesale) and with those already in contact with the hungry who could direct them to us and soon became established providers of food parcels* (NB although we call our services Foodshare, this includes not only Food Parcels - as well as food, they need clothing & underwear, toiletries for personal hygiene eg toothbrushes, sanitary towels, nappies, razors etc, bedding, furniture and kitchen appliances to prepare, cook & eat from eg we've had service users been given tins but can't open them as they don't have a tin opener). Thus now leading us to the next step – we are now not only going to supply food parcels, but our Service Users / Volunteers are going to PREPARE & COOK IT for their neighbours, their community and themselves. Our Records: Our training with Evaluation Scotland has helped us to understand and ensure our services are tailored to the communities needs and ensure the right data is recorded to track the differences CCG's services and activities are making to inform strategic decisions and strengthen governance procedures. In the past 12 months, this has shown an increase in number & type of service users, but also the range of items needed and the geographical spread (service users walk up to 5 miles to reach us) with many 'following' our Pop-Ups. Some words taken from Questionnaires on how service users feel before/after using our Foodshare services: Before: Embarrassed, Humiliated, Shame, Vulnerable, Poor, Scared, Cold, Lonely, Isolated, Disabled & Hopeless After: Grateful, Thankful, Happy, Less scared, Less alone, Relieved, the list goes on …………. Our Journey: The following demonstrates how our services evolved to meet the needs as identified by our referring partners & service users (real examples of referrals & services users): 2011 - Drop-in Foodshare Centre eg Walk in: Male arrives physically shaking, hasn't eaten for 5 days, has 2 children he makes excuses to why they can't visit him, he's ashamed & visibly upset. We provide a food parcel, enough for his children to visit and signpost to Wheatley Group for intervention / early crisis. He has since successfully participated in the Work Ready Programme and now regularly sees his children. 2015 - Mobile Foodshare Service 'Food on Wheels' NHS Asylum Health Bridging Team refer (a family) asylum seekers needing food and support to integrate within community. We deliver food parcels. All are now taking part in our community centre projects & activities. 2015 - Emergency & Out of Hours Foodshare Service Epic 360 refers a disabled (amputee), incontinent & agoraphobic lady, we speak on telephone, she feels dirty, hungry and very lonely. We deliver a box of toiletries, food & refer her to Turning Point. Money Matters referral: A woman & children arrived at centre for abused women, with nothing more than the clothes on their backs, we deliver a food parcel (inc toiletries & clothing) immediately. 2016 - Pop Up Foodshare opens in Govanhill Liz came to us suffering from depression; her husband had lost his job; they and their children were hungry. Within months the family were attending regular activities, before becoming volunteers. Liz was the driving force behind setting up our Govanhill Pop Up Foodshare, which weekly provided food to 50+ families inc local Roma community http://myccgblog.wixsite.com/blog/single-post/2016/10/18/An-other-day-in-the-Govanhill 2017 - Independence from Foodbanks Project Helps transition service users away from their reliance on foodbanks by teaching affordable recipes, budgeting, shopping - 53 now completed. 2017 - What you need to know to Look after Yourself & Your Family Project Outreach Programme, aimed at those BME communities, sensitive to cultural needs 2018 - School Holiday Lunch Club 60+ children attended our summer lunch club – receiving their lunch daily throughout school holidays inc trips to the Cinema and Funworld Taken from our Blog on 18 July 2018: Crookston Community Group foodshare ran out of food at Dunterlie Community Centre today which was not surprising as foodbank use is at its highest in 12 years. Service users at our offices in Beltrees Road are very worried about the roll out of Universal Credit in the next few months throughout Glasgow. "I think there's going to be a tsunami of people needing help" -a comment made by one of our volunteers. Printed Statistics: The use of food banks in Scotland has risen by 20% in the last year - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-41895594 The need for food banks is well publicised https://stv.tv/news/scotland/1413196-scottish-food-bank-use-more-than-doubles-in-five-years/ WHO will benefit: 1. Our Community Development Officer will receive an additional salary and will take on more responsibilities, gaining a wider range of experience and skills. 2. Individuals & families within Crookston & Pollock areas, Glasgow wide and Dunterlie in neighbouring East Renfrewshire - all within the most deprived 5% on the SIMD. Housing schemes that appear derelict on first glance are actually habited homes, poverty, crime, drug & alcohol abuse is rife and the norm, many living within chronic conditions. All service users are individuals whose life experience and circumstance have found themselves in desperate need for a helping hand, with many having no control over their daily food intake. Reasons identified: - Recent Austerity Measures resulting in Benefit Cuts - Low income - Overspent benefits - Debt – credit cards, goods purchased on finance - Asylum / Refugees - Unemployment - Homeless - Pay cuts - Sanctions - Theft - Partner controlling money - Zero Contract Hours - Minimum wage earners - Increasing numbers of people with low skills - Increasing numbers of people with learning difficulties or mental health problems not receiving enough support - Increasing numbers of elderly people living in poverty - Ex-offenders - Ill health / Disability / Mental Health Issues - Alcohol / Drug Misuse WHERE: Training & Cooking To meet the demands and facilitate the above, we have taken over an additional unit at 48 Beltrees Road and are renovating into a fully functional catering & training kitchen. Crookston Community Centre – will be located at 56 Beltrees Road & Crookston Community Kitchen – will be located at 48 Beltrees Road. Drop-in Foodshare Centre Location: 56 Beltrees Road, Crookston Foodshare Open Hours: 10am to 7:00pm – Monday to Friday Mobile Foodshare Service 'Food on Wheels' & Emergency & Out of Hours Foodshare Service: Food Parcels delivered Glasgow wide and throughout East Renfrewshire. Daily deliveries also made to: Nan McKay Hall Glasgow City Council Social Services The Hub (Govan) Pollokshields OAP Al-Farooq Education and Community Centre Paisley Refugees City Mission Montieth Project Shaheliya Project 50pm Church Central Mosque for distribution to their service users. Pop Up Foodshare: Dunterlie Community Centre Arden Community Centre Pollok Community Centre The Wedge Govan Community Project Migrant Help Swamp

Core costs

This group deliver a broad range of community projects and services in the Crookston area of Glasgow, the funding will be used to sustain the groups activities.

Your support helps us to educate, build confidence and provide food to the needy of Glasgow in emergency situations.

Detailed information not yet available.