Residents who are passionate about helping others are invited to get involved in a volunteering opportunity to become Food Champions across Warwickshire.
This latest round of volunteer recruitment follows the successful launch of the Food Champions role last year. Seventeen residents went on to complete the training and have since started helping to support and deliver local food projects across the county.
The aim of the role is to equip people with the right knowledge about how to eat more healthily, in ways that are affordable, and that contribute to the environment in more sustainable ways.
The County Council is now looking to expand its number of Warwickshire Food Champions to support local organisations and community groups with their food-related community projects.
The work of the volunteers will also support key priorities outlined in the Warwickshire Food Strategy 2023-2026, which has been developed to ensure there is a supply of good quality, healthy, and affordable food available for everyone across the county.
The opportunity is recommended for those who enjoy helping others, working with other people by sharing knowledge and ideas, and are eager to take on a meaningful challenge. No specific dietary expertise or formal qualifications are required. However, volunteers will be expected to provide guidance to community groups on key aspects of the Warwickshire Food Strategy and to support the main aims of this work.
To equip all volunteers with the necessary tools and knowledge, free online training sessions will be provided in November and December on a range of topics. These will cover ‘Kind Communities-Kind Food’, a County Council-led community engagement programme that provides live cooking demonstrations and information about how to adopt healthier lifestyles as well as other food-related community support.
A free online webinar will take place ahead of the four training sessions at 7pm Monday 14 October. This is a great opportunity for prospective Food Champions to ask questions about the role, the upcoming training sessions, and to meet the County Council contacts supporting this opportunity. If you would like to attend the webinar please contact Rina Sarna rinasarna@warwickshire.gov.uk, providing your name and contact details.
Following the introductory webinar, free training sessions will be held, online, on the following dates:
- Session one on 4 November, 7- 9pm. A welcome introduction to becoming a Warwickshire Food Champion, and an overview of the Public Health challenges faced in Warwickshire related to diet and food inequalities.
- Session two on 11 November, 7-9pm. What forms the basis of a healthy and sustainable diet, and how to understand ultra-processed foods, food pricing and labelling, types of diet, food safety and key legislation.
- Session three on 25 November 2024, 7-9pm. Find out how people can learn to cook and grow their own food, including low-cost cooking, healthy approaches, reducing food waste, and community approaches to food sharing.
- Session four on 2 December, 7-9pm. This will be all about food and the environment, covering the impact of food supply systems on climate change and how this can be reduced, as well as key approaches to living healthily and self-awareness. A summary of the course will complete this series of four sessions.
If you would like to find out more, ask questions, or catch-up on any missed sessions, please contact Rina Sarna at rinasarna@warwickshire.gov.uk.
Cllr Heather Timms, Warwickshire County Council Portfolio Holder for Environment, Climate and Culture, said:
“The Warwickshire Food Champions have been fantastic so far at supporting food-related projects in local areas across the county, and we look forward to welcoming more volunteers on board soon. They are an important part of helping us to engage and share ideas with residents in a new way, especially about how to reduce food insecurity and to promote healthier diets in ways that are affordable and sustainable.
“If you enjoy helping others and being a positive force in your local community, then I encourage you to come along to our free training sessions to find out more. Our team are friendly, welcoming, and look forward to meeting those interested so that together we can discuss how best to promote healthy food and well-being changes that will make meaningful differences to our local communities”.
Warwickshire County Council first introduced the Warwickshire Food Champions initiative in November 2023, to support the wider work of the Warwickshire Food Strategy 2023-26 which has been developed by the Warwickshire Food Forum partnership.
The Strategy focuses on providing better access to affordable and healthy food, raising awareness and education about healthy food choices and promoting sustainable food to help reduce carbon emissions and support biodiversity.
To learn more, visit the Warwickshire Food Strategy webpages on SearchOut Warwickshire.
For cost-of-living support, visit www.costoflivingwarwickshire.co.uk