Mobile food hub provides essentials to villagers

Nathan Cooper and his partner found finances "a struggle" after the birth of their son but spending far less on food and other essentials has made a difference

A mobile food hub offering free or cut-price essentials is making a huge difference by cutting down on shopping bills, users of the service have said.

Hope Against Poverty began delivering food and other provisions to six villages in South Cambridgeshire a year ago and has expanded its offer with a new and larger electric van.

The community interest company was set up to benefit people in the district struggling with the cost of living.

Nathan Cooper, 30, said: "It makes a lot of difference with finances, it's not leaving us short in the last two or three weeks [of the month]."

The provisions come from supermarket surpluses, food waste charity FareShare and local farms

Mr Cooper said: "Lately we've been struggling, I've only just started working this month and before that [my partner and I] were on universal credit, and yes, we get the rent paid, but the other stuff like food is just so expensive."

He was particularly grateful for the nappies, baby food and shampoo.

He liked the variety of the goods and said finances had "been a struggle" since the birth of his son, now aged one, until the couple discovered the service.

Mahesh Hettiarachchi said the scheme aims to "give people what they want, not just what they need"

The van makes weekly trips to areas with higher deprivation such as Papworth, Orchard Park and Duxford.

The initiative started after figures showed food shopping bills had risen by almost 20% in the past year.

Organiser Mahesh Hettiarachchi said it sells "heavily discounted" essentials ranging from fresh fruit and vegetables to toiletries.

"Our project is completely different from a traditional foodbank as we are open to anyone, you don't need vouchers to access it, we don't ask any questions," he said.

A year on, "we're getting 20 to 25 people or families at every village we visit".

Carl Woolf discovered the hub while on a visit to his GP

Carl Woolf, who is in his late 70s, said: "It's amazing and I'm really surprised that more people aren't using it."

He discovered the mobile food hub on a visit to his GP surgery and initially thought it was "some sort of jumble sale".

"Whenever I'm here in Fulbourn, I always come along," he said.

Volunteer and hub user Chris Soanes said pensioners and young mums are among those who visit the van

Chris Soanes started by using the hub and is now one of its volunteers.

"I live on my own and I do abhor food waste and it's handy for me as they only give me what I need," said the 58-year-old, who receives employment support allowance.

"We have people on very, very low incomes, pensioners, young mums, people who have literally nothing in the house."

She enjoys advising people how to make the best use of ingredients with recipe advice - or explaining to people living in one room "that you can cook in a hotel kettle".

The much larger van means that a full range of goods can be offered to villagers

Mr Hettiarachchi said the food hub was able to buy the larger, electric van thanks to a £15,000 grant from South Cambridgeshire District Council and the rest was raised through crowdfunding.

It plans to expand the service to an eighth village in mid-August.