Coldean Community Corner offers surplus food and hot drinks for a donation

Coldean Community Corner runs a community food pantry and cafe, offering surplus food, tea and coffee, all for donation. It is at the top of Beatty Avenue, next to the convenience store and the pharmacy, and opens on Monday mornings and afternoons, Wednesday afternoons and Friday mornings and afternoons.

The pantry takes surplus bread, pastries, fruit and veg, plus what the Brighton and Hove Food Partnership⁶ calls “daily surprises”. The council’s warm welcome directory lists a suggested donation of 50p to £2.50 for hot drinks and £5 for a full bag of food. The Food Partnership says anyone is welcome, “whether you need food to take home, a hot drink, or even just a chat.”

A spokesperson told the Argus⁸: “Everyone should have somewhere they feel comfortable visiting, someone to talk to and an opportunity to be part of their local community.”

The Corner was set up in 2014 with money from the Post Office Community Enterprise Scheme, with the aim of reducing social isolation. It is now run by the Coldean Community Organisation^1,2,3,4, a not-for-profit community group whose legal model is a Community Benefit Society. Anyone who has volunteered with the organisation can stand to be a director.

The Corner’s website says it relies on volunteers to stay open. It wants Community Support Volunteers to serve in the cafe, help with the surplus food, do admin or drive to collect supplies, and offers training that includes basic food hygiene and barista skills. The organisation is also looking for a treasurer and bookkeeper.

The Corner asks people who would like to offer a few hours to pop in for a chat or complete an application form. For more information or an informal chat, contact consultant@coldeancommunity.org.