Woman, 22, loves leading community supermarket

Daisy Dady has taken on extra roles as demand for community support has grown

A woman who helps run a charity says she "absolutely loves" the role, despite admitting her age is a double-edged sword.

Daisy Dady, 22, is projects and programs manager at the Rainworth-based Social Action Hub in Nottinghamshire, which coordinates a cafe, youth work and emergency food parcels.

Its social supermarket, which sells surplus supermarket food at about a 10th of its original price, is currently running a £35,000 appeal to allow it to expand.

Ms Dady said her relative youth meant she was sometimes patronised at meetings but said: "I get to feel a bit smug when I show them what I can do."

The supermarket said it supported struggling families and stopped food going to landfill

Ms Dady began volunteering at the hub, which was set up by her mother, when furloughed from her work during the Covid pandemic.

While initially a temporary move, she found the role so rewarding she has stayed on as it expanded its scope.

She said: "I absolutely love my job because of the type of work that I do can be so different every day and can benefit each person in a different way.

"Some days I am on youth club and helping 30 kids have the best evening.

"Some days I am in the social supermarket talking to a lady who was in desperate need and really appreciates what we have done for her.

"Day to day it can be a different feeling of why I love that day in particular but overall it's because I love helping people and I just fell in love with the work I do."

Anya said she was happy to join the queues to get items for her children

The social supermarket works with 45 supermarkets and food outlets, has more than 30 volunteers, and is estimated by the hub to have helped more than a thousand people.

It differs from a foodbank in working more like a traditional shop, allowing people to choose their own food from a colour coded selection of donations.

The charity aims to provide a weekly shop, valued at £45, for £4.50.

The team said demand had tripled since October, which they attributed to both the rising cost of living but also "breaking the stigma" of using this sort of outlet.

Anya, a mum who lives in the area, called the service "a lifeline".

She said: "It's always a surprise what you get but most of the time it is worth the wait in the queue!

"Sometimes you get things you can't normally buy because they are too expensive and other times it gives you basics at a good price."

A fundraising campaign aims to allow the supermarket to expand its premises and range

Ms Dady believes the charity had made an "immense difference" to the area, with her personally taking on roles as a support worker, administrator, forest school leader, youth worker and project coordinator, while also helping people write CVs and fill out benefit forms.

In October she became concerned with reports of the number of teenagers leaving the local schools without qualifications.

In response, she set up the Young Leaders programme, which now has 20 young people involved in volunteering and community projects.

However, Ms Dady admits her own relative youth is a double-edged sword.

"It's an advantage in the work I do with young people because they feel I understand their issues," she said.

"But when I go to networking meetings, sometimes I do get undermined and patronised.

"People sometimes assume I don't know what I am talking about so I get to feel a bit smug when I show them what I can do."

The current fundraising appeal will allow the supermarket to move to larger premises, extend opening hours and introduce new initiatives like a school uniform exchange.