Igniting passion & fuelling action for social change

The

Kindling Trust

NEWSLETTERJoin us in building a fairer, more ecological food economy

for Greater Manchester and beyond

VEG BOX PEOPLE DELIVERS WEEKLY SEASONAL VEG

BAGS TO WORKPLACES AND OTHER COMMUNITY HUBS.

FRESH LOCAL ORGANIC VEG FOR YOU, A FAIR PRICE FOR LOCAL FARMERS P.4

FARMSTART: FARMSTART:

TRAINING TO BECOME A GROWER.

TRAINING TO BECOME A GROWER.

Meet FarmStarter Dan and decide if

trying out a career in growing is

for you p.2

Woodbank Community Food Hub in Stockport has been a hive of activity from bee keeping to bat walks. The community garden is gaining momentum, and local community groups are becoming familiar faces at the site. p.6

Other friendly faces include those on the social prescribing programme; 10 weeks of growing, cooking and eating together. Run in partnership with local GPs and local groups, this mixture of activities is proving to be a truly healthy success. p.7

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FREE

THE BEE KEEPING

EXPERIENCE

CARROTS AND CARERS COFFEE MORNING

KCLI AGM 2017

A MEMBER OF

TRIALLING A GROWING CAREER

www.kindling.org/farmstart

FarmStartFarming, it seems inaccessible as a career option for most of us, especially if you’re not from a farming family. However, our farming population is aging and local healthy food is as important as ever.

FarmStart is a programme which aims to address this, offering an affordable opportunity to train as an organic grower. It can be described as a ‘farm incubator’ - enabling prospective farmers to experience a growing season or two, before going on to trial their own enterprise. Supporting entry into farming, it provides technical support and mentoring, access to land and equipment, as well as routes to market, while limiting risks. Farm incubators are particularly adapted for newcomers who do not have a farming background. So step forward and join a new generation ofentrepreneurial, ecological growers!

FarmStarters at the Woodbank site in Stockport (based at Woodbank Community Food Hub) undergo a year long training scheme led by experienced grower and trainer Helen Dodd. Does this sound appealing to you? Come along to the ‘Do you want to be a farmer?’ session, see page 11 for details.

CREATING A NEW GENERATION OF GROWERS

Tales from the polytunnels FarmStarter Dan Larke “I think the thing that has surprised me the most is how quickly things start to grow once the sun is out for long enough and the ground has warmed up!”

Dan fi rst heard of Kindling through regularly volunteering with the Land Army. Not coming from an agricultural background, the experience gave him an insight into local production and sowed the seeds of his interest in organic horticulture, leading him to sign up to Kindling’s Commercial Growers Course. Following the pathway of opportunities that Kindling offers, he has been able to test out a career in commercial growing through the FarmStart programme as his knowledge and passion has developed.

A UK farm incubator network?FARMSTART PROGRAMME GAINS MOMENTUM ACROSS THE UK

Exciting FarmStart developments are on the rise and we are very happy to have helped groups such as Bristol Food Producers and LESS Lancaster to develop their ideas. But it doesn’t stop there, plans are afoot to set up a UK network of Incubator farms and we are honoured to be working with Organic Lea, Ecological Land Co-op, Tamar Grow Local, Growing Communities and a growing number of amazing groups to make it happen.

Inspired by Reneta, the successful French network, it will provide a way for existing farm incubators to support each other and to help new initiatives get off the ground.

“I feel part of a movement that is doing for organic farming what Tesla and Solar City are doing for energy: making it available, affordable and changing peoples’ attitudes towards it.”

Cultivating a route to marketManchester Veg People deliver local food to an eatery near youThe FarmStart model is supported by the Manchester Veg People (MVP) co-operative which is a wholesale route to market for fresh, local and organic produce. The close partnership between the FarmStart team and MVP means that Greater Manchester chefs get access to the freshest produce, delivered to their door within 48 hours of it being picked.

The University of Manchester has played an instrumental role in MVP, being one of the first co-op members in 2011. Students are served local organic produce at ~9 catered halls, as well as university cafe’s. They also worked with Kindling to kick start Veg Box People (see page 4) offering students, staff and local people the opportunity to pick up a veg bag and buy bread and eggs from a weekly stall.

“Veg Box People set up shop just outside the Greenhouse cafe at University Place. You can pick up your veg bag and, at the same time treat yourself to a hearty veggie or vegan meal at the cafe, packed with delicious local MVP veg, to reboot for the afternoon.” AlexFarrington, Food On Campus Team.

Are you interested in sourcing local veg? Contact us at vegpeople.org.uk

Commercial Growers CourseFOUR DAY INTENSIVE COURSE COVERING ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW TO KICK OFF A CAREER IN GROWING

Many people who join the FarmStart programme attend the Commercial Growers Course to get a taste of what’s to come (see page 2). It aims to give an intensive education in commercial organic growing. It was oversubscribed in 2017 with 18 participants partaking from all walks of life including fl orists, allotment owners, entrepreneurs, students and artists.The course fi lls a real gap for people wanting an introduction to horticulture on a commercial scale; 70% participants say it’s unique, and happily would all (so far!) recommend it to others.

“I really enjoyed the course as it was very informative but also very inspiring - especially listening & talking to Jenny and other growers. It was well structured, well thought out and presented. I would highly recommend it to others.”

We recommend attending the ‘Do you want to be a farmer?’ session and then applying for the course held over three weekends in October, see page 11 for details.COOP MEMBER MELVYN

DISPLAYS LOCAL PRODUCE

LEARNING FROM EXPERIENCED GROWERS @ GLEBELANDS CITY

GROWERS

2 3

FARMSTART CO-ORDINATOR HELEN

FARMSTART PR

OPAGATION TU

NNEL

VEG BOX PEOPLE

FIND YOUR NEAREST HUB FOR LOCAL, PEOPLE-POWERED ORGANIC VEG

vegboxpeople.org.uk

/vegboxpeople

1 The Kitchen on Great Moor St, Bolton | 2 BBC Quay House, Media City | 3 Grindsmith, Deansgate | 4 Ancoats Coffee Co.

5 Bridge 5 Mill, Ancoats | 6 Cloudwater Brew Barrel Store | 7 St Wilfrid’s Enterprise Centre | 8 Hulme Community

Garden Centre | 9 Homes for Change | 10 MMU All Saints Campus | 11 UoM University Place | 12 Coffee Cranks Cafe

Alexandra Park | 13 UoM Fallowfield Campus | 14 The Vegetarian Society Cookery School, Altrincham | 15 Windmill Coffee

Shop, Stockport | 16 Woodbank Park Nursery, Stockport | 17 The Button Warehouse, Macclesfield

Correct at the time of print. PLEASE CHECK OUR WEBSITE to see the most up to date collection points, they are added regularly!

“My grandfather used to say that once in your life you need doctor, a lawyer, a policeman and a preacher but every day, three times a day, you need a farmer.” [[BRENDA SCHOEPP]]

Reconnect with your local growers

through a weekly seasonal veg bag.

Delivered to workplaces and other

community hubs by Veg Box People (VBP).

At the time of writing, VBP are supplying

local organic veg and fruit to around 100

more regular customers than they were

the same time in 2017 - averaging at 230

veg bags per week!

CALLING ALL SHOPS / EATERIES /

WORKPLACES / COMMUNITY SPACES...

Do you want to join the local food

revolution and become a veg bag

collection point? Request a Collection

Point Guide from the VBP website.

97% UK PRODUCE

66% PRODUCE FROM

GROWERS WITHIN 50 MILES OF MANCHESTER

6075 VEG BAGS PACKED

“It is part of our overall reflection about the world, climate change and contributing to the change. Veg Box People sort of gave us the idea that local, organic and good was achievable.”

“The veggies taste great and you can tell how fresh they are.”

“Lovely, friendly group. It’s personal; the staff/volunteers are engaged and knowledgeable rather than representatives of a faceless, large organisation.”

“I feel like I contribute, even if just a little, to making the food

supply chain better and fairer.”

Described by a recent volunteer as ‘Very enjoyable. Rewarding. Life-affi rming’, Kindling’s Land Army is a great opportunity to get your hands dirty on the land. In 2017, 180 volunteers joined us for a day at our organic incubator farms, reporting benefi ts such as veg growing knowledge and skills, enjoying nature, meeting like-minded people and improved wellbeing.

Some love it so much that they go on to join our FarmStart programme and start the journey towards being commercial growers themselves - see Dan’s profi le on page 2. Don’t take our word for it, sign up for a day out with the Land Army. Gloves, good company and a delicious organic veg soup provided (what’s not to like?!).

Head to the website www.kindling.org.uk/landarmy to sign up.

Land Army recruits report for duty…ON A FUN DAY OF VOLUNTEERING ON THE LAND

M60 M60

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Hyde

ECCLES

Sale

Altrincham

Worsley

MANCHESTERAIRPORT

MANCHESTER

MACCLESFIELD

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Wilmslow

Prestbury

Hazel Grove

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MediaCity

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STOCKPORT

15 CITY CENTRE

Collyhurst

MilesPlatting

NorthernQuarter

Spinningfields

Hulme

Ancoats

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HYDE ROAD

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OXFORD

TRINITY

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REGENT RD

A56

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Ardwick

ASHTON NEW

PRINCESSROAD

OldTrafford

RING ROAD

A57(M)

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CHORLTON ROAD

ALAN TURING WAY

ROAD

Cheetham Hill

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The dynamic and creative mindset of co-operative workingKindling is a social enterprise that places a high value on co-operative working. Our fledgling projects Veg Box People and Manchester Veg People are both set up as cooperatives, and community projects based at the Woodbank Hub are driven by the people that participate.

KINDLING DIRECTOR AND UNICORN GROCERY CO-OP MEMBER DEBBIE CLARKE...“Working co-operatively for me means valuing one another’s contributions as equals, giving people a say in the things that affect them, and feeling a real ownership of the amazing business we’re part of. It’s a world away from the typical hierarchy and huge pay differential that’s considered the norm in the business world.As co-op members we have a unique level of control over our working lives, it’s incredibly empowering. That also comes with responsibilities; we’re not owners in the traditional sense of the word, more like stewards – we have to look after the business so we can pass it along in good shape to the next generation of co-operators”.

Kindling’s activities have been rooted in co-operative culture from day one, and this ethos is at the heart of the developing Kindling Community Land Initiative (see page 10).

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WOOD WORKING

BEE KEEPING EXPERIENCE

The evolution of the council plant nursery...

We also host monthly ‘Carrots and Carers Coffee Morning’ in partnership with Signpost for Carers and a monthly gardening session with Stockport Progress and Recovery Centre (SPARC), who support people experiencing mental health issues.

AND we are Stockport’s second Veg Box People collection point (see page 4), meaning the community around Woodbank are able to access some of the freshest, locally grown organic veg around.

WOODBANK COMMUNITY FOOD HUB

www.woodbank.org.uk

WREATH MAKINGCHRISTMAS

SOCIAL

From our very fi rst visit to the old plant nursery at Woodbank Memorial Park, it was clear that this was a space with bags of potential to become a thriving community resource. With space for both commercial food production and community-led growing and activities, it felt like the perfect place to bring a community together through the many possibilities that reconnecting with local food creates.

This vision began to take shape with the opening of the site to the public and the launch of a programme of community events, in Spring 2017. Between then and now the community have joined us for a wild food foraging walk, which yielded some spectacular fi nds, a woodwork day, bat walks in Spring and Autumn, some (very) early morning bird watching and a supremely festive Christmas gathering, complete with homemade mince pies and Christmas carols.

“I first came across the site when I attended the bird walk. I spoke to Ian who explained more about the veg growing and I tentatively popped in. Flowers are more my thing but I was intrigued to have a go at vegetable growing.

Being at the Woodbank Hub is like being in the countryside. Anyone could benefit from getting involved really. When you’re there, you’re not bothered about the mortgage or work. It takes you out of yourself, everybody needs to get away from the day to day.” Rita

Community growers focus: Rita and Janice

“We were on site already growing veg, it’s great to be part of the whole site getting back to life. It’s really good to work with other people, meeting people who you wouldn’t usually.

When you’re a professional grower you have to do what buyers want. But we can experiment more and try different varieties. We’re going to try to grow purple tomatillos which are used for Mexican salsa and yard long beans, (that are actually a yard long!) in the polytunnel space.

It’s nice to have people eat what you grow - you’ve done it!” Janice

WOOD WORKING INTRODUCTIONBIRD WA

TCHING

6 7

RITA, 3RD FROM LEFT

Post Brexit food production The Land Workers Alliance do amazing work campaigning for the rights of small scale sustainable producers. This year that has included trying to shape the post Brexit agricultural policy, to support and value small scale producers and invest in a more ecologically responsible and socially just food and farming system. Find out more about their work and read their recommendations for post-brexit farming policy on their website: landworksersalliance.org.uk

www.feedinggtrmcr.org.uk

WORKING TOGETHER AND CONNECTING WITH LIKE-MINDED GROUPS IN GREATER MANCHESTER

Building a sustainable food movement

SAVING OUR SEEDS, A SIMPLE ACT OF RADICALISMYou may have heard about the Bayer/Monsato merger which will put a large proportion ofglobal seed in the hands of just a few companies. The good news is that here in the UK there are a number of seed suppliers that sell organic, open pollinated seed (unlike the big corporates). This means that they are seed producing varieties, so you can seed save yourself and use them for many years to come, or share them with friends. Start your own radical seed saving journey by searching The Seed Cooperative or The Real Seed Company.

Towards the end of 2017 Kindling launched the Sustainable Food Vision for Greater Manchester. This was developed with over 100 groups from across Greater Manchester’s sustainable food sector, to look at how we could all support a more sustainable city and increase access to healthy affordable food for all.

The Feeding Greater Manchester network is made up of individuals and local groups who are passionate about sustainable food and now has hundreds of members. We aim to bring people together as part of a network committed to realising sustainable change, creating a space for collaboration and reminding us that we are all part of a movement. Our 2018 screening of the Land Workers Alliance documentary ‘In Our Hands’, brought people together from across Greater Manchester to explore the idea of food sovereignty and how we can put more of the UK’s food system back in the hands of the local growers, on whom we all depend.

SOCIAL PRESCRIBING PILOTSocial prescribing is a way of enabling GPs, nurses and other healthcare professionals to refer people to a range of local, non-clinical services. Our fl edgling More than Medicine programme, which has been running since 2017, aims to promote physical and mental health and wellbeing, through a programme of food growing, cooking and eating together as a group.

“77% of participants have

experienced meaningful improvements in their

mental wellbeing, through taking part in More

than Medicine”.

For many of our participants a big part of this improvement has been increased confi dence and it seems that feeling better about themselves has led them to want to help others too. Just some of the amazing things past participants have gone on to do include setting up a cookery club, starting a community allotment, joining health walks, volunteering and building a seating area for the community garden at Woodbank.

Social impact at a glance2017 saw the introduction of a social impact toolkit to be able to practically measure the effect of our projects.

100% of our More than Medicine participants have made new friends and felt part of the wider community, whilst 88% have reported improved wellbeing and 83% cooked with more veg. 96% have also reported developing new

skills & knowledge!

66% of our Veg Box People customers have

felt healthier since joining the scheme!

Woodbank residents have built skills and knowledge too, with 93% of visitors

reporting this, and 71% making new friends and feeling part of the wider

community.

Feedback from our Commercial Growers Course show

improved skills and knowledge (100% of all who fed back) and a whopping 85% also reporting an

improvement in wellbeing.

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Countryside Walk: August 5th 2018

‘Do you want to be a farmer?’ session: September 10th 2018

Commercial Growers Course application deadline: September 16th 2018

Commercial Growers Course 2018 dates: October 6th, 7th, 20th and 28th

FarmStart application deadline: November 14th 2018

Days out to the farm with the Land Army: See our website for dates

STAY IN TOUCH...

CLOSING THE LOOP DATES FOR THE DIARY

In the past our vision has sometimes been called too big or complex, so this comment at a Q&A session was music to our ears, and excitingly we are fi nding that this is increasingly the response.

The food system is at the root of many problems in society, from food related illness, to an aging farming population, to soil depletion. It impacts on us all and yet many of us are completely disconnected from it. The Kindling model aims to tackle these challenges by turning this on its head. We engage people through food and use it as a vehicle for social change; reclaiming our food system to build healthier, happier and more resilient communities.

We support people to develop solutions all along the food system. From the production - growing a new generation of organic growers who farm in an ecologically responsible way.

Creating fairer markets for these growers and networks of supportive communities, while at the same time increasing access to good, healthy food for all, as a right and not a privilege.

Kindling Community Land Initiative is a vision for a new kind of farm, one that will provide good quality, healthy, fair organic food. But it will also provide an example of agro-forestry in theNorthwest , training, an enterprise hub, and support for groups and communities working for social change . It is a much needed next step on our journey to close the loop; a way of scaling up everything that we do and demonstrating the exciting possibilities for creating a fairer and more sustainable food system.

...how the Kindling Community Land Initiative aims to complete Kindling’s vision for a new food system

Grower

Someonelike you!

University & school canteens

CREATING A MARKET FOR FRESH, LOCAL

PRODUCE

Restaurants

Growing training (FarmStart)

Volunteer days (Land Army)

Community Growing and More Than Medicine Programme

INCREASED

ACCESS FOR ALL

TO FRESH LOCAL

ORGANIC

PRODUCE

“I’ve seen projects that do bits of what you do, but I’ve never seen it being done all together, as one model. It makes so much sense.”

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10 11

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Demandfor localproduce

WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE KEPT UP TO SPEED ABOUT PROGRESS OF THE FARM? SIGN UP TO THE E-NEWS ON OUR WEBSITE FOR UPDATES, DETAILS ON THE NEXT PAGE

Igniting passion & fuelling action for social change

The

Kindling Trust

www.facebook.com/kindlingtrustwww.facebook.com/kindlingtrust twitter.com/kindlingtrusttwitter.com/kindlingtrust vimeo.com/kindlingvimeo.com/kindling www.kindling.org.ukwww.kindling.org.uk