Thirteen residents, all passionate about helping others, have completed a series of training sessions with Warwickshire County Council...
Thirteen residents, all passionate about helping others, have completed a series of training sessions with Warwickshire County Council ready to help deliver food projects across the county, and to become ambassadors for the Warwickshire Food Strategy.
The thirteen Warwickshire Food Champions are in addition to seventeen residents who joined the voluntary scheme last year, bringing the total to thirty Food Champion volunteers.
A recent event, attended by twelve of the new Warwickshire Food Champions, was held at Old Shire Hall in Warwick to welcome the residents into their new volunteer roles. The latest Food Champions were also able to meet with many of the residents who first joined the initiative in 2024 and share information and experiences with each other about this voluntary role.
Representatives from the Council were also in attendance at the event to thank the residents in person for volunteering their time to this initiative, and to present the latest Food Champions with certificates for completion of their training.
The training sessions were delivered by expert speakers and discussed a wide range of topics including cooking on a budget, food hygiene, food and public health, and community food growing.
The aim of the training was to help the new Warwickshire Food Champions know how best to support food-related projects within their local communities, and to equip other people with the knowledge about how to eat more healthily, in a way that is affordable, and that contributes to the environment in more sustainable ways.
The work of the growing cohort of volunteers is supporting key priorities outlined in the Warwickshire Food Strategy 2023-26, which has been developed by the Warwickshire Food Forum to help ensure better access for all residents to good quality, healthy, and affordable food. For residents in need of cost-of-living support, visit www.costoflivingwarwickshire.co.uk.
Cllr Heather Timms, Warwickshire County Council Portfolio Holder for Environment, Climate and Culture, said:
“This event was a great opportunity to meet the latest Warwickshire Food Champion volunteers and to understand their passions around helping to reduce food insecurity across the county.
“It is important to engage with local communities so that we understand the best ways to promote healthier diets which are also affordable and sustainable, and the Food Champions initiative helps us to engage with residents directly in a proactive and meaningful way”.
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 more information about becoming a Warwickshire Food Champion, please contact Mike Slemensek at mikeslemensek@warwickshire.gov.uk.