Project to help vulnerable people in the kitchen may end

Groups that run events to provide pots, pans and other kitchen items to people who can't afford them said they may not be able to hold their events.

Cracking Good Food, based in Chorlton, Manchester, said while demand was increasing, so were costs.

Director Tracy Torrey said the organisation, a community interest group, was fortunate to have the support of the three charities.

But she said aid is not guaranteed.

Cracking Good Food said its Kitchen Kit Callout campaign has already distributed about seven tonnes of pots, pans and cookware to an estimated 12,000 people, preventing more than 83 tonnes of carbon emissions from landfill.

Beneficiaries of the program include foster children and veterans living independently, people finding housing after a period of homelessness, people fleeing domestic violence and people living in crisis situations.

“For the past two years we've been giving people the tools to make the simplest meals,” Tory said.

“Over the past two months, businesses across Greater Manchester have been setting up orange bins and asking team members, colleagues, supporters and customers to check their cupboards at home for items they no longer need.

She added: “We are keen that funding can be secured to ensure the future of this much-needed project.”

Louise Denby, manager of Victoria House, a temporary supported housing provider in Manchester, said the project would ensure people had the basics to cook as they moved on to the next phase.

Rebecca Dunn, from Kickstart, which teaches cooking skills to adults in low-income areas, said the project gave people “an opportunity they wouldn't normally have – to cook with their families”.