Next Meeting of Blackpool food partnership steering group meeting

I've set up a doodle poll with some possible dates for our next meeting in the first week of February. Please go to the link below, tick your available dates and save them.

 

http://doodle.com/6z4z46k8ggkr49dt

 

Please do this before midday on Monday 14th and we will fix the date in diaries by the end of next week.

 

 

My notres from this weeks meeting follow

 

 

ACTION NOTES FROM SECOND MEETING OF

BLACKPOOL FOOD BANK WORKING GROUP

Monday 7^th January 10am at Springfield Methodist Church

A dozen or more of us were present and we had a good discussion of a range of issues as per agenda including the possibilities of partnership and funding with Blackpool Council,

The key decsions and action points were:

1. Methodist Action as the lead agency, accountable charitable body will need to set up a local provider board for this project which would involve a broad representative group including people in the room today. Stephen was asked to produce and circulate a draft "terms of reference" document covering the governance of the project.

2. Blackpool Council is taking on reponsibility for community care grants and DWP crisis loans and has a limited pot of money for this purpose. They aim to provide help in goods rather than cash and help with food for people in need was likely. They could potential fund a food bank project on the basis they would assess eligibility and refer clients. We debated various options how this might. Agreed we would each try to contribute to the Council's consultation exercise within the next few weeks. Jill from the Council would set out in writing what they felt was needed and appropriate. Methodist Action would produce a document which looked at costings and eligibility foe the food parcels. These to be circulated before our next meeting.

3. The next stage would be to get the churches on board in terms of collecting foodstuffs and money and volunteers in order to launch the service around Easter. Greg agreed to draft a Lent Appeal letter / leaflet for the churches Phil Moore to check out the intial storage possibilties at North Shore Methodist.

4. Existing food services such as the Blackpool Food Bank supported by Oasis, the Salvation Army and SVP could continue but we wanted to work together complementing each other and maximising the possibilities of bulk supplies etc. There will need to be some detailed conversations one to one and in the group to make this happen.. But we agreed the best name for promoting the wider work with transparancy would be Blackpool Food Partnership ..with subtitles such as (delivered by Methodist Action NW, supported by the churches and communities of Blackpool )...

5. We will meet again in about 4 weeks. Greg will set up and circulate a doodle poll to settle the date.

 

If you would like a word version of this to print please click below

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/89023969/together%20lancashire%20docs/action%20notes%20on%202nd%20food%20bank%20meeting.doc

 

If you have not done so already please sign up to receive our wider information bulletins about Christian social action in Blackpool either via our Blackpool blog at http://togetherlancashireinblackpool.blogspot.co.uk/

Or our Blackpool facebook group which anyone may join  at https://www.facebook.com/groups/tlblackpool/

 

Shalom

Greg Smith

Development Co-ordinator Together Lancashire / Preston Christian Action Network

34 Broadgate, Preston PR1 8DU

Phone no. 01772 827987 Mobile 07726177044

Together Lancashire, registered office Church House, Blackburn BB1 5AA

Registered Charity no 1147848 Registered company no 07966145

Together Lancashire Website http://www.cuf.org.uk/together-lancashire

Our Blackpool blog is at http://togetherlancashireinblackpool.blogspot.co.uk/

Our Blackpool facebook group which anyone may join is at https://www.facebook.com/groups/tlblackpool/