New community shop aims to help people eat well for less

A brand new community shop has officially opened its doors to help residents across a city to eat well for less.

There will be a large range of quality food items for lower prices at the shop

Eastfield Community Shop in Wolverhampton celebrated its formal opening on Friday with community chefs doing demonstrations and providing tasty food to sample, a chance to try Zumba classes and with experts on hand to give advice on a wide range of issues.

The community shops are open to everyone in the city with everyone having the chance to benefit from the great produce at great prices, are run by volunteers and have a membership fee, which varies between venues.

The shops also offer great learning opportunities for individuals who lack confidence or skills and which could lead to employment opportunities in the future.

Volunteers Karen Murphy, Patricia Fergusson, Sue Johnson and Natalie Bird celebrate the opening of the shop

They were set up as a response to what Wolverhampton Council learned around food support during the Covid pandemic, with the feedback saying food options needed to be more sustainable and reflect the diversity of residents and give better choice.

The food options in the shops are fresh, frozen and have a long shelf life, as well as toiletries and cleaning products.

There is a selection of products that enable residents to make a range of healthy, tasty meals, which support growth and healthy development and make healthy savings on their weekly outgoings.

Centre manager Denise Robins (left) with Councillor Louise Miles (right) and volunteers as they cut the ribbon

Leader of the council, Councillor Ian Brookfield said: "These shops provide an amazing service during these tough times and are open to everyone in the city.

"I’m proud we’ve been able to help create something which is literally a lifeline to many families especially at the moment.

"Everyone should be able to buy good healthy food at reasonable prices, but lately, as we all know, that’s proving more and more of a challenge with food prices continuing to soar.

"I’d like to thank all the volunteers who work tirelessly week in and week out to ensure these shops are there to help everyone across our city when they need them most.

"And, watch this space, as we’ll have news on an exciting flagship community shop opening soon in the city centre."

Councillor Louise Miles and centre manager Denise Robins show off some of the items up for sale

Eastfield Community Shop coordinator, Denise Robins said: "It’s been great to celebrate the shop’s launch alongside the centre’s Open Day today and to celebrate its proven worth to families within the community.

"We continue to strive toward offering a variety of good quality food and household items, as near to pre-pandemic prices as we can and feedback has been really positive to date.

"The cost of living crisis has been hard on everyone, so it’s good to help out where we can and we always look forward to seeing our regular members pretty much on a daily basis, they are a great bunch!

"Membership is easy and open to everyone, you don’t have to be claiming benefits - just pop in and sign up on the spot to start shopping and saving straight away."

Eastfield community shop is based at Colliery Road in Wolverhampton and is open from Tuesday to Thursday from 11am to 4pm.