Asda and social supermarket chain Community Shop have partnered to open a new store in Swarcliffe, in north Leeds. Opening next month, the site will provide hundreds of local people with access to discounted surplus food and household items, as well as cheap hot meals, skills workshops and further learning opportunities.
The new store will be the 14th in Community Shop’s network of social supermarkets, each of which tackles the root causes of food insecurity in communities experiencing social inequality, offering members a hand-up, not just a handout.
This latest store is opening thanks to the support of Leeds-based Asda, who have supported Community Shop’s other stores for over a decade through the donation of surplus products. Through the Swarcliffe store, Asda will be continuing to donate stock to provide the community with access to quality food, while also providing funding towards fixtures and fittings that will enable the building to be converted into Community Shop’s unique three space format.
Since its inception in 2013, Community Shop has supported over 73,000 families through this model, embedding resilience within communities and improving peoples’ circumstances for the long-term. Community Store has saved members over £50 million on their regular food shops, whilst the Community Hubs have delivered more than 218,000 development programmes and Community Kitchens have fed over 880,000 children for free.
Community Shop Swarcliffe will be made up of three distinct but interconnected spaces – Community Store, Community Hub and Community Kitchen. The store will provide members with access to deeply discounted food and essentials, including fruit, vegetables and bread for only 20p. The profits from the store will be reinvested into Community Hub which will deliver life-changing holistic support and development, empowering people across the local community to develop their own capabilities and deliver a positive future for themselves, providing members with the personal tools they need to improve their own circumstances and address the causes of their food insecurity, in a supportive, safe environment. To complete the interconnected spaces, Community Shop Swarcliffe will have a Community Kitchen, a café that enables people to connect with others and learn through food, as well as providing home-cooked meals for the community with kids eating free every day.
Building on Community Shop’s decade of work in communities across the country, it has been welcomed to Swarcliffe where it has been working in partnership with several local organisations for more than a year to design and create a new community hub on Stanks Gardens (LS14). Working in partnership with Leeds City Council and the Swarcliffe Good Neighbours Scheme, a peer-to-peer social aid group, the new Community Shop will create a thriving and sustainable community asset that supports people of all ages for many years to come.
Kris Comerford, chief commercial officer at Asda, said: “As a Leeds-based business, we’re excited to be supporting the local community in Swarcliffe through our work with the new Community Shop. Through discounted products and the learning opportunities on offer, we hope this store can provide life-changing support and make a lasting difference to those in the area.”
Gary Stott, Executive Chairman of Community Shop, commented: “For the past 12 years, Community Shop has not only provided our members with access to deeply discounted goods but also delivered life-changing programmes and holistic support so that our members develop their own capabilities and deliver a positive future for themselves. We’re delighted to continue our mission, empowering individuals, families, and communities across the Leeds area and I thank Asda for their support in helping us open this new store.”
Councillor Mary Harland, Leeds City Council’s executive member for communities, customer service and community safety, said: “I am delighted that a new Community Shop will be opening in Swarcliffe next month. As a Council we remain committed to tackling poverty and inequality and so initiatives such as this are a key part of helping us support residents while at the same time reducing the amount of food going to landfill.”
The store operates on a free membership basis and will be open to those on means-tested benefits who live in the local area. For more information visit companyshopgroup.co.uk/communityshop
