PEOPLE struggling with the cost of living this winter will get help with food vouchers, community meals, cookery workshops and money advice sessions thanks to £80,000 in grants from Dorset Community Foundation and BCP Council.
The latest round of grants from the BCP Food and Energy Support Fund is supporting 23 groups across the area helping people cope with the cost of living, using money from the Department for Work and Pensions’ Household Support Fund. The grants will support projects running to the end of March.
The Power House in Poole will run a warm hub for families and individuals using a £3,000 grant. Project Manager Alix Rusling said the hub will be a welcoming space where visitors can get hot drinks and nourishing food as well as take part in creative, wellbeing, and social activities.
“This grant would enable us to offer a Winter Warm Hub, building on last year’s start-up,” she said. “It will provide a vital space for community members most affected by the cost-of-living crisis, offering warmth, comfort, and a safe space, serving as a refuge for vulnerable residents in future winters.”
Faithworks will use a £3,975 grant to run financial resilience courses for individuals and groups. Chief Executive Alistair Doxat-Purser said: “These money guidance sessions will be tailored to those most at risk – including single parents, people escaping homelessness, individuals on low or insecure incomes and those facing physical or mental health challenges – often a combination of these factors.”
He said users of its foodbanks in Blandford, Christchurch, Poole and Wimborne said benefits and financial guidance was one of the top three things they would like extra help with. “Many people come to us in crisis, but we want to help them move from surviving to thriving,” he said.
We Are Humans will be serving free daily meals and running a food pantry at its Sea Road base in Boscombe, as well as delivering hot meals and essentials to rough sleepers in Bournemouth town centre, thanks to a £5,000 grant.
Grants and Fundraising Manager Kathy Grubb said: “This grant will help us provide more than just meals — it will offer warmth, dignity, and the message that someone cares. We’ll continue to serve hot food, pantry staples, and hygiene products from our Boscombe hub while delivering hot meals and supplies directly to rough sleepers in Bournemouth town centre on weekends when other services are closed.”
Winter is a good opportunity to demonstrate the value of cooking, particularly demonstrating cost effective shopping and cooking techniques, sharing budget tips and recipes and giving access to ingredients which they might not otherwise try
The Friendly Food Club in Bournemouth was awarded £4,000 to employ a part-time Community Engagement Coordinator to work with voluntary groups in the Springbourne, Bournemouth Central and Boscombe West areas to organise community cookery workshops.
Trustee Jeremy Stein said: “We have targeted these areas with increasing levels of food insecurity, driven by rising rents, temporary accommodation and higher than average rates of drug and alcohol-related issues. We receive approximately four requests each week from individuals and health professionals in Bournemouth asking about open community access to cooking projects.”
He said the sessions will teach budgeting skills and demonstrate nutritious recipes that use cheaper ingredients. “Winter is a good opportunity to demonstrate the value of cooking, particularly demonstrating cost effective shopping and cooking techniques, sharing budget tips and recipes and giving access to ingredients which they might not otherwise try,” he said.
Cllr Sandra Moore, BCP Council cabinet member for Communities and Partnerships, said: “BCP Council is dedicated to supporting our most vulnerable residents, especially during these challenging winter months.
“By funding these groups, we are helping to ease the cost-of-living pressures and ensure vital services reach those who need them most. The incredible efforts of volunteers and frontline workers make a real difference every day, and we are deeply grateful for their commitment to strengthening our community.”
Every grant will make a huge difference in our communities
Dorset Community Foundation Chief Executive Grant Robson said: “BCP Council’s support allows us to get vital funding to the places where it will make the most impact.
“There are so many grass roots charities and voluntary organisations whose work is keeping people warm and healthy – and passing on the skills to make people more resilient. Every grant will make a huge difference in our communities.”
Full list of groups funded: Aim Community, Ashley’s Birthday Bank, Bee Mission 500 CIC, Bournemouth Foodbank, Bournemouth Spear Trust, Citizens Advice Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole, Citygate Church, Dorset Community Action, Faithworks Wessex, Friendly Food Club, GodFirst Church, Hope Community Church, Kinson and West Howe Foodbank, MS Centre Dorset, Poole Communities Trust, Poole Waste Not Want Not, Recreate Dorset, Refugee Support Europe – Bournemouth Dignity Centre, The Parks Foundation, The Power House (Poole), Townsend Community Association and We Are Humans CIO.
Pictured: The Power House in Poole will run a warm hub for families and individuals using a £3,000 grant from Dorset Community Foundation’s BCP Food and Energy Support Fund
Pictured: The Friendly Food Club in Bournemouth was awarded £4,000 from Dorset Community Foundation’s BCP Food and Energy Support Fund to hire a Community Engagement Coordinator to organise community cookery workshops
Pictured: We Are Humans will be serving free daily meals and delivering hot food and essentials to rough sleepers in Bournemouth, thanks to a £5,000 grant from Dorset Community Foundation’s BCP Food and Energy Support Fund
