Stornoway Community Fridge opened its doors last week to help local people face the cost of living crisis.
With support from residents and businesses, Stornoway Community Fridge provides a stock of food, a warm space, and a hot meal every Wednesday and Friday.
Environmental charity Hubbub has partnered with the Co-Op to create hundreds of community fridges across the UK.
But the cosy spot in community centre An Taigh Cèilidh is the first in the Western Isles.
Organiser Sharon Reid says that, just in the first week, they have seen a “huge response”.
‘Phenomenal’ volunteers
She expected for the turnout to be “slow to begin with” but “pick up momentum”.
Instead, she says, “we’ve had the opposite of that”.
Stornoway Community Fridge had its grand opening last Wednesday — but Ms Reid says they had people visiting even before they officially opened the doors.
The number of people coming to volunteer has also been “phenomenal”, she says.
“It’s been more than we anticipated or expected, especially in early days like this.”
‘Fuel poverty’
For Ms Reid, the Fridge’s popularity is proof of the impact the cost of living crisis is having in the Western Isles.
She noted that the area has “one of the highest percentages of people living in fuel poverty” in the country.
This means that, with a long, dark winter looming, people will be struggling to heat their homes – even without factoring in food costs.
Plus, since almost all supplies are shipped from the mainland, food prices are considerably higher.
People on the mainland also have far more supermarkets to choose from. On the islands, it’s often simply not possible to shop around until you find a good price.
Stornoway Community Fridge hopes to ease the burden by providing a “much needed resource” of food that “otherwise would be destined for landfill and the bin.”
‘Absolutely amazing’
Local businesses such as the the Blackhouse Bakery and Stornoway’s Co-Op have joined the project. And Ms Reid says they have just gotten word that food supplier Williamson will provide “a box of fresh fruit and veg once a week, which is absolutely amazing.”
In fact, help has been pouring in from all sides.
“We’ve had super support from local councillors. They’ve been backing this project since day one,” says Ms Reid.
Co-Op Member Pioneer Paul Chamberlain has also been “instrumental in helping us set this up.”
“He’s as keen as we are to see this project grow, and grow into new areas,” she says.
“It’s a multi-agency approach. So everybody’s behind it.”
Because the Fridge isn’t just an emergency food supply — it’s a place for the community to come together.
“Everybody that’s coming, we’re able to give them something hot in their bellies. And it’s not just about coming in to use the community fridge.”
People can also just come and have “a wee yarn in a warm place”.
Some visitors may not have seen anyone that week, says Ms Reid, who hopes the Fridge can help combat social isolation in the Hebrides.
The community element is also about “taking away the stigma of going to a food bank”.
It’s a long way to come from an uncertain beginning to the project.
‘We didn’t think we would get it’
Stornoway Community Fridge started as a food bank in An Taigh Cèilidh’s back room.
The team noticed that it was “getting used quite a lot, a lot more than we thought”.
In looking for a better process to provide even more support, they came across Hubbub’s initiative.
“So we spoke to the Community Association and applied for the funding.”
“In all honesty,” Ms Reid admits, “we didn’t think that we would get it.”
And then, even as we talk, someone comes in with an armful of food to donate.
More local reporting from the Western Isles:
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