The Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells is delighted to announce that this year it will be supporting Nourish as its annual charity partner. Nourish is a registered charity, providing short-term emergency food provisions and support to individuals and families experiencing crisis in the borough of Tunbridge Wells, South Tonbridge and surrounding areas.
The charity’s dedicated volunteers deliver food parcels to clients 365 days a year and are available overnight to respond to emergency calls prompted by domestic violence or sudden traumatic events, such as family relocation. Over the last financial year Nourish provided emergency food for 4614 people in the local area, over 46% of whom were children under the age of 18.
It’s not just about food. The consequences of food poverty can be far reaching, including increased crime, loss of tenancies, mental health problems and family breakdown. Nourish can help provide more positive outcomes by offering a period of respite and an opportunity for change. The charity is different from other food banks in that it delivers food parcels to beneficiaries, currently running four storage units at Big Yellow Self Storage in Tunbridge Wells, one of which is fully funded by Big Yellow.
How will the support help? All contributions will go directly towards the wonderful and dedicated volunteers who deliver food parcels to referred clients 365 days of the year, and overnight for those emergency calls. The charity relies on the generosity of the local community for financial and food donations so that they can work towards their mission statement of “No one need be hungry in Tunbridge Wells, South Tonbridge and the surrounding areas.”
To ensure that any need is genuine the charity operates on a referral only basis, with referrals from front line professionals, such as health and social workers, family liaison officers, housing support workers, police and voluntary agencies such as CAB and Age UK TW amongst others. Working closely with the referral agents the charity aims through support to identify and hopefully eliminate core issues, while discouraging a culture of dependency, helping families and individuals in crisis until they can move on. It also provides guidance on developing better core life skills, such as cooking and budgeting, as well as advice on employment & training.
Nourish Operations Manager, Dawn Stanford said, “We are very excited to have been chosen as the Assembly Hall Theatre’s charity of the year and are very much looking forward to working together. It will be a great way to share what we do with the many visitors to the theatre, to have theatre employees visit our base as corporate volunteers and to give theatre audiences a chance to support local people in crisis, while also enjoying the many wonderful shows the theatre will have on offer this year.”