Bringing sunshine to Fife
In February 2021, The Essentia Foundation awarded the organisation a grant of £2,800.00. Project funding would mark a relaunch of activities following some 15 months of closure.
The Sunshine Kitchen
In July 2020, The Sunshine Kitchen moved into a new kitchen facility which was much larger than the previous, allowing for better social distancing and safer overall working practices. Based in Fife, they rent kitchen premises where their team develops and prepares food products (with an emphasis on using local produce) which they sell at local farmers' markets, etc. The Sunshine Kitchen (the operating name is SUNSHINE CLUB, est 2018) also provides a catering service and regularly supplies food to a local café regularly. The team currently consists of eighteen young adults between 18 – 30 who present with a range of lifelong neurological conditions, including autism, ADHD, Down's Syndrome, etc. The project also runs a peer mentoring programme which provides further places to several young people working in a supporting role under staff guidance. Most of these young people have transitioned from full-time education, and, following this, many found that they could not find work or meaningful activity. There is currently a waiting list for the service.
Project
In February 2021, The Essentia Foundation awarded the organisation a grant of £2,800.00. Project funding would mark a relaunch of activities after 15 months of closure. In July 2020, The Sunshine Kitchen moved into a new kitchen facility which was much larger than the previous, allowing for better social distancing and safer overall working practices. This necessitated purchasing some new kitchen equipment, along with the necessary masks and sundry items needed to keep everyone safe such as hand sanitiser, thermometers and more. The charity hoped the project would help young people and the wider community recover from the effects of lockdown and inactivity.
The project commenced in April 2021. To kickstart a return to regular activities, The Sunshine Kitchen quickly purchased large storage bins for each person's personal belongings to keep things separate and safe and some new uniform items. For their market stalls, the club invested in some Perspex screens, chosen carefully, so they did not appear off-putting to customers, and new banners to separate off the sides of the stalls. This helped to increase the visibility of the charity in the local community.
Impact
Throughout the project, The Sunshine Kitchen continued attracting new customers and supporters, with previously unknown catering clients coming forward to work with them and local groups doing fundraising on their behalf. As for the young people on the project have expressed relief at being able to return to an in-person setting. Saturday cooking sessions have resumed, and the group has seen a highly positive increase in membership. These sessions help to structure a young person's week, particularly for those with ASN who enjoy the routine of attending.
"The Essentia Foundation has provided invaluable support to our organisation at a time when we were facing the daunting task of preparing to reopen following our COVID 19 closure. Thank you for helping us to survive!" – The Sunshine Kitchen Staff
As of 2022, The Sunshine Kitchen is bigger than ever. In March 2022, the organisation secured funding from the Scottish Government's Mental Health & Wellbeing Fund, administered by Fife Voluntary Action (FVA). This will enable them to employ new staff members to run another fully supported kitchen session during the week. This Summer, the organisation is also looking forward to launching a brand-new gardening project which will boost the kitchen's ingredients and educate young people on the importance of fresh produce and good nutrition.