By Sammy Mngqosini
May 12 2020, 08.55
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A Trellick Tower social enterprise is spearheading a campaign to tackle hunger and loneliness in North Kensington during the coronavirus pandemic.
In response to the Covid-19 outbreak, the Goldfinger Factory, a sustainable furniture business, has transformed its five-year-old, free monthly community meal event to a home meal delivery service to continue to feed vulnerable residents under lockdown.
Trellick Tower in Kensal Town and the neighbouring Golborne Road residential flats are predominantly home to social housing tenants, low income families and immigrants.
Through the People’s Kitchen To Your Door (PKTYD) initiative, members of the public are encouraged to pay it forward and buy a meal token for as little as £10 to sponsor a meal for one person or £50 to feed a family of five.
Marie Cudennec, Goldfinger Factory CEO and co-founder said: “Food is an important part of feeling good, we feel cared for when someone cooks for us, it’s almost like a mother’s love.
“North Kensington is an area which often gets overlooked because it’s in the very wealthy Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.
“Yet it is the most deprived ward in London according to Greater London Authority statistics which measure unemployment, crime rate and mental health. “
Beneficiaries can choose between a vegan, gluten-free and halaal meat main meal option plus dessert which, along with a handwritten note, are then delivered by volunteers in a safe, socially-distant manner directly to their homes.
Miss Cudennec continued: “Tackling the hunger crisis, food poverty and loneliness has always been our priority so together with our partner, Sicilian chef Guiseppe di Matteo of Panella, we are grateful to be in a position where we can continue to support our community through this pandemic.
“So far the meal delivery has been purely funded by the kindness and generosity of individual donations and it’s been heartwarming to see that.”
The iconic, Grade 2 listed tower block also has a large number of elderly residents who moved in during the 1970’s after the building was completed by Erno Goldfinger, the Hungarian-born architect and pioneer of Brutalist architecture.
Susan Darocha, 72, who is now self-isolating but attended previous monthly community meal events before lockdown said: “Having meals delivered to me now is very important because it keeps my morale up and makes me feel like I haven’t been forgotten.
“Marie and the team have made the effort to continue to provide the meals at a time when I wasn’t even expecting them to be available and that shows just how important supporting our community is to them.”
Another Trellick Tower resident, JP, said: “The most impressive thing about Marie’s team is their long-standing commitment and consistent support they have shown us through these years.
He added: “The PKTYD is a great example of an enterprise going the extra mile to provide food and emotional support for those who are feeling vulnerable and isolated at this time.”
In addition to the meals, PKTYD has a weekly Zoom community gathering which features live music performances and a WhatsApp group for neighbours to connect, share stories and photos.
PKTYD aims to raise a total of £20,000 in order to provide meals every Sunday for 10 weeks.
More information about how to buy meal tokens can be found here.
A dedicated phone line, 07984 014 446 has been set up for general enquiries about the meal delivery service.
