July's Community Stories

Urban Goodies CIC

Urban Goodies is a Community Interest Company set up to alleviate food poverty, provide nutritional meals and tackle disadvantage in the community. They provide a welcoming safe space at local community centres, by providing lunches, ready meals, community fridge and cookery classes. Urban Goodies believe nutritious food and education should be accessible to all and aim to have zero wastage from donated food. Since 2021 the organisation has been providing cookery classes, community café, pop up food stalls, suspended meals and affordable ready meals to the community, cooking fresh food, and ensuring nutritious meals are available to all.

The Community Resilience Team are supporting Urban Goodies with obtaining funding to continue this work whilst awaiting larger bid decisions.

With the benefit of a grant from Hubbub, Urban Goodies opened a Community Fridge in Holbrooks Community Care Association. The aim of the fridge is to fight food waste and support local people. It does this by collecting leftover food from businesses, then making it available to local residents and community groups.

Community Fridges are sociable places where any member of the community can exchange surplus food. The aim is to reduce food waste and provide a space where the local community can share food and household items, skills, recipes and more. They are open to everyone, and work on a spirit of trust. Anyone in the community can donate and anyone can take.

Over 450 families benefit from the community fridge per week, which to date relates to over 16,200 meals. Urban Goodies has redistributed over 3 tonnes of food. A ready meal project was established in January 2023, thanks to a Pilot Project grant from Heart of England Community Foundation and to date, Urban Goodies have cooked 1747 meals for over 480 families. The organisation hire a kitchen at Holbrooks Community Centre to cook the ready meals and they are distributed from the fridge at Holbrooks Community Care Association.

Urban Goodies have launched a number of new projects, these include their Pet Project, Pamper Project, Printing Project, Sweetshop Project, Splash Project & Home Essentials Project; these project have all been born out of the dialogue they have with customers.

Urban Goodies are happy to discuss their project(s) with other community groups who may wish to learn how they can either support or provide a fridge to their establishment. Get in touch and take a look at their facebook page

If your community organisation needs support applying for funding, please get in touch with the team communityresilience@coventry.gov.uk

Coventry Irish Society

Coventry Irish Society provides a range of services to all generations of the Irish community in Coventry and the surrounding areas. The charity offers a wide range of health and welfare services, and a variety of cultural and heritage projects, including a St. Patrick's Day Festival.

With the support of the Community Resilience Team, the charity received £1,055 in funding to help them re launch their oral history project ‘Irish Heart, Coventry Home’ which focuses on Irish migrants that arrived in the city between 1940 and 1970. The project includes filmed interviews, photographs, and written materials. Originally exhibited at the Herbert Art Gallery in 2018 the exhibition had more than 6000 visitors and 700 people on opening night.

Hosted in Eaton House, the Irish Society have a variety of befriending and support groups and are available for support and advice.

For more information and on events and or how to get involved please visit their website

Let's Chat Scheme - Transport for West Midlands

The Community Resilience Team would like to thank Dawn and Caroline at Transport for West Midlands, for hosting our recent Community Messengers meeting at the Let’s Chat community room in Pool Meadow Bus Station.

The Let’s Chat scheme is a year-long pilot scheme to help tackle loneliness and to connect people with others in their local community. The scheme offers ways to meet new friends, get advice or find out about local services and support groups.

There are 3 ways to get involved:

Community Hub – The Let’s Chat room is located in the Pool Meadow Bus Station, it is open Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday’s 9:00am – 2:30pm. Anyone can drop in for a cup of tea and a chat. You are sure to receive a very warm welcome from Dawn and her volunteers who run the hub.

There is also a community room available free of charge to community groups and charities helping to bring people together to tackle loneliness. To enquire about booking the room please contact:

Dawn.varley@communitytransport.org Mob:07974 626942 or Caroline.keyes@communitytransport.org Mob:07974 626947

Mobile Hubs – The Let’s Chat mobile hubs will be parked up around community venues in Coventry. If you spot the Let’s chat mini bus, hop on for a chat! You can find out where the mobile hubs are going to by visiting the website. There’s a warm welcome and a cup of tea or coffee waiting for you!

Community Transport - West Midland Bus on Demand offers transport service where you book a minibus to pick you up at a certain time and place. It can be used by anyone travelling in Coventry. It does not follow a specific route. Instead, you book a journey and a bus will pick you up at a time you choose. For more information and how to book please visit the website