Cook for Good

Cook for Good tackles food poverty and social isolation through a place-based food and cookery programme that brings communities and businesses together to deliver social impact.

Every year UK companies spend over £200 million on team-building exercises to boost morale and support staff retention. Meanwhile, CSR departments report only 14.9% of employees undertake volunteering – often because charities cannot accommodate single volunteering days, leaving few options for teams wishing to work together to make a difference in a limited amount of time.

These challenges often happen within easy reach of social housing where people are struggling to make ends meet. In the UK, 8.4 million people are living in food poverty, with 14% of families reporting moderate or severe food insecurity.

Cook for Good run a community kitchen, cookery school and surplus food pantry within a housing estate in King’s Cross, London. Residents can access healthy affordable food through pantry membership whilst the weekly CfG meal provides nutritious meals and companionship for those in need. Corporate team-building events help to fund the community pantry work. 

Funding from Postcode Innovation Trust was used to scale up the community and corporate programmes in the new kitchen, through funding a kitchen manager, outreach worker and admin support staff, thanks to Players of People's Postcode Lottery. 

Visit their website here: https://www.cookforgood.uk/