New FoodCycle Tottenham community meal needs volunteers to help tackle food poverty and food waste

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
A charity that aims to tackle food poverty, loneliness and food waste, has launched it's first community meal project in Haringey.

FoodCycle Tottenham needs volunteers to help provide free weekly hot meals for local guests in a friendly and welcoming atmosphere, every Wednesday at 7pm.

A charity that aims to tackle food poverty, loneliness and food waste, is appealing for volunteers to help at a new community meal that’s launched in Tottenham.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

FoodCycle needs volunteers to help provide free weekly hot meals for local guests in a friendly and welcoming atmosphere, every Wednesday at 7pm, at St Paul's Church, on Park Lane, N17.

FoodCycle needs volunteers for a new community meal in Tottenham.FoodCycle needs volunteers for a new community meal in Tottenham.
FoodCycle needs volunteers for a new community meal in Tottenham.

It’s the first FoodCycle community meal to open in Haringey, and is among 29 now running in London, as the charity expands to help nourish communities across the city.

Volunteers get to be part of the ‘FoodCycle magic’ – transforming surplus food that would otherwise go to waste into delicious vegetarian dishes, such as soups and salads, pasta bakes, curries, stews, pastries and fruit crumble.

Across London, FoodCycle has served more than 38,500 meals so far in 2024, and saved more than 60 tonnes of surplus food from going to waste. The charity has been running for 15 years, and now runs 94 community meals nationally.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Everyone is welcome to turn up to eat for free, with regular guests including low-income families, elderly people, refugees, people who live alone, may be homeless, or simply want to get more involved in their community. Other nearby FoodCycle meals include services at Finsbury Park, Hackney, Islington, Kilburn, Camden, and Wathamstow.

FoodCycle volunteers turn surplus food into delicious community meals.FoodCycle volunteers turn surplus food into delicious community meals.
FoodCycle volunteers turn surplus food into delicious community meals.

Whether you’re a food waste warrior, akeen cook or washer-upper, a tea-making machine, or just enjoy a friendly chat while sharing a delicious meal, volunteering with FoodCycle is a fun way to help your community, and the environment too.

No prior qualifications are needed to volunteer with Foodcycle and there’s no minimum weekly commitment – just sign up via the FoodCycle website and relevant training and guidance will be provided.

Roles include cooking, hosting and pot washing, or helping run the project, for which you need to be available for four-hours on any day you volunteer. Drivers or cyclists are also needed to help collect surplus food, for which you need your own transport.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

FoodCycle Regional Manager for North and West London, Alannah McGovern said:“It’s heartening to have opened our first community meal in Tottenham. Haringey is a vibrant area and we know our free food provision will be a vital support to many local people, particularly as the high cost of living continues to affect food costs and food bills.

FoodCycle volunteers turn surplus food into delicious community mealsFoodCycle volunteers turn surplus food into delicious community meals
FoodCycle volunteers turn surplus food into delicious community meals

"Each week we provide a safe, welcoming space for anyone who wants to come along to enjoy great food and conversation with us for free. Our community meals run on the kindness of volunteers, so we’re asking local people willing to give up a few hours a month to get in touch.”

Chris, a long-term FoodCycle London volunteer says: “It’s always lovely to see the smile on guests faces and the warm, welcoming atmosphere of our community meals. But also the energy and enthusiasm of our volunteers as we push ourselves to create and serve restaurant-quality meals. I've also learnt that there are pretty much no limits to the diversity of vegetarian food - we've hardly repeated dishes in my six years of volunteering!”

So far in 2024, FoodCycle has served over 100,000 free meals to people across England and Wales and saved more than 200 tonnes of surplus food from going to landfill. The charity celebrates its 15th birthday in September.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

FoodCycle Tottenham takes place every Wednesday at 7pm, at St Paul's Church, 60 Park Lane London N17 0JR.

Donate to support FoodCycle: https://foodcycle.org.uk/donate/

Other FoodCycle London meals open to the public:

  • FoodCycle Barking - Sundays at 1pm at Al Madina Mosque, 2 Victoria Road, Barking, IG11 8PY
  • FoodCycle Fulham Court - Mondays at 6.30pm at Family Hub Tudor Rose Community Centre, Fulham Ct, London SW6 5PG
  • FoodCycle Camden -Tuesdays from 5pm at 67 Plender Street, NW1 0LB (access via front door of Saint Pancras Community Centre)
  • FoodCycle Wembley - Tuesdays from 6.30pm at Park Lane Methodist Church, Park Lane, Wembley, London, HA9 7SG
  • FoodCycle East Ham - Tuesdays at 7pm at Pilgrims Way Church, Pilgrims Way, East Ham, London, E6 1HW
  • FoodCycle Islington - Wednesdays at 1pm at New River Baptist Church, 80 Arran Walk, London, N1 2TL
  • FoodCycle Lewisham - Wednesdays at 1.30pm at Lewisham Irish Community Centre, 2A Davenport Road, London, SE6 2AZ
  • FoodCycle Peckham - Wednesdays at 5pm at All Saint's Church, Blenheim Grove, London, SE15 4QS
  • FoodCycle Marylebone - Wednesdays at 6pm at St Paul's Church, 5 Rossmore Road, London, NW1 6NJ
  • FoodCycle Hackney - Thursdays at 12.30pm at New Kingshold Community Centre, 49 Ainsworth Road, London, E9 7LP
  • FoodCycle Walthamstow - Thursdays at 6.30pm at St Mary’s Welcome Centre on Church End, E17 9RH
  • FoodCycle Mitcham -Thursdays at 6.30pm at Togetherness Community Centre, Wakefield Hall, Taylor Road, London CR4 3JR
  • FoodCycle Wandsworth Road - Fridays at 12.30pm at Christ Church Community Hall, 41 Union Grove, London, SW8 2QJ
  • FoodCycle Woolwich - Fridays at 12.30pm at Woolwich Common Community Centre, 17 Leslie Smith Square, London SE18 4DW
  • FoodCycle Bow Road - Fridays at 7pm at Bow Road Methodist Church, 1 Merchant Street, London, E3 4LY
  • FoodCycle Thornton Heath - Saturdays at 12.30pm at St Alban's Church Hall, 1 Whitehorse Lane, London SE25 6RD
  • FoodCycle Finsbury Park - Saturdays at 1pm at Finsbury Park Community Hub, Corker Walk, London, N7 7RY
  • FoodCycle Kilburn - Saturdays at 1pm at St. Cuthbert's Parish Church, Fordwych Road, West Hampstead, London, NW2 3TN
  • FoodCycle White City - Saturdays at 1pm at Our Lady of Fatima Parish Centre, Commonwealth Avenue, London, W12 7QR
  • FoodCycle Lewisham - Saturdays at 1.15pm at Lewisham Irish Community Centre, 2A Davenport Road, London, SE6 2AZ
  • FoodCycle Roehampton -Saturdays at 5pm at Roehampton Methodist Church, Minstead Gardens, Roehampton, London, SW15 4EB
  • FoodCycle Peckham - Saturdays at 5.30pm at All Saint's Church, Blenheim Grove, London, SE15 4QS
Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.

Follow us
©National World Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.Cookie SettingsTerms and ConditionsPrivacy notice