“

supporting local older people at home”

Michelle McCrindle Food Train Chief Executive

• Background, overview and where it

all began • How it works and who for • Partnerships, challenges and achievements • Our Social Enterprise principles • Food Train in the policy context

What we do ... •  Food Train

weekly grocery delivery service •  Food Train

‘EXTRA’ practical home support service •  Food Train

Friends befriending and

Food Train Scotland Dundee Stirling West Lothian

Dumfries & Galloway

Where did it all begin .....   Started by a group of older people in Dumfries in 1995

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after the results of a community survey highlighted food access as a major problem for older people Set up as a Charity, Company Ltd and Social Enterprise, ran entirely by elderly volunteers till 2002 Established to make sure local older people could eat well and live more independently Needed partnership with local grocery shops, referring agencies and volunteers Helped by local CVS with premises, admin support, governance etc. Scottish Executive investment of £187,000 in 2002-2006 helped expansion across Dumfries & Galloway

Where did it all begin?   By September 2006 had gone from Dumfries town only to

region wide across Dumfries & Galloway with 6 local branches BUT with fast growth came many challenges – funding not matching growth, increased expectations, maintaining volunteer numbers etc.   Profile and needs of customer changing, home support and befriending services added in 2006 and then 2010   Scotland expansion supported by Scottish Government from 2009 with first new area set up in West Lothian September 2010   Started off with a handful of customers and volunteers –

now 850 customers and 400 volunteers and still growing!!

Where we do it ...   Food Train Dumfries started July1995, became

Dumfries & Galloway wide by September 2005 (grocery delivery, ‘EXTRA’ and Friends)

  Food Train West Lothian, started September 2010,

first new area of Scotland, supported by Scottish Government, CF & HS and West Lothian Council (grocery delivery service and‘EXTRA’ in development)

  Food Train Stirling, started November 2011,

supported by Scottish Government and Stirling Council (grocery delivery service)   Food Train Dundee, started January 2012, supported by Scottish Government and Dundee City Council (grocery delivery service)

Who uses Food Train ...   Available to any older person aged 65 and over who

experience difficulty getting their grocery shopping, can be used short term or long term and with any frequency from weekly or less   Older people can self refer as a self help/ preventative measure, any health/social/care agency can refer someone as part of more intensive health/ care package   ‘EXTRA’ service helps the most frail with independent living at home tasks   Befriending helps those most socially isolated and lonely to get out and enjoy life and friendships   All service users are company members with a vested interest and democratic say in shaping the

How the shopping service works! •  Anyone can refer an older person to use our service •  The most popular method is self referral •  There are no forms to fill in and no formal assessment •  The lack of bureaucracy allows us to start the service quickly •  We supply the customers with a blank shopping list •  Completed shopping lists are collected on a nominated day and •  •  •  • 

another blank one left to be filled in over the week Completed lists are submitted to the local shops where orders are made up ready for our volunteers to deliver On the nominated delivery day the volunteers collect the order and deliver to the customer Help to unpack and put away is provided if required Customers pay the cost of their shopping and a small delivery charge of £3

•  Flexible, easy access, easy to use, no barriers

Keep it simple: Load-deliverunpack

How the ‘EXTRA’ service works! •  Additional service for Food Train customers, developed from the •  • 

•  •  •  • 

needs expressed by our customers Additional teams of ‘EXTRA’ volunteers provide practical support to our customers at home Initial visit to complete a home safety check, issue a ‘message in the bottle’ and carbon monoxide detector – referral made to Fire & Rescue, local Handyman, Care & Repair as necessary for other work Volunteers then visit every 3 or 4 weeks for 1 – 1 ½ hours Variety of jobs undertaken e.g. inside window cleaning, fridge/ freezer defrosting and cleaning, light housework and small repairs Reduces risk of falls and injury in the home, helps promote independent living and increases social contact Sliding scale charge for each job from £3 to £10 depending on time

•  Doubling up on resources makes this a hugely cost effective

additional service

Food Train ‘EXTRA’ Food Train ‘EXTRA’ volunteer Margaret doing the windows inside for a grateful customer

Freezer defrosting and cleaning; quick and easy with an electric steamer!

Built on solid partnerships   Partnership with local grocery stores: provides choice

for customers, guaranteed source of provisions, access to fresh and affordable foods   Partnership with local sources: referrals from any agency, group, club or individual who identifies an older person in need   Partnership with local people: all services delivered by local volunteers and coordinated by local staff   Partnership with local funders: excellent return on investment, meets local needs with wider benefits, community capacity in action   Partnership with our members: listen and learn to provide members with what they need, when they need it and at a cost they can afford

Challenges Achievements   Sudden demands on

  Staying independent and

capacity   Staying within our boundaries and saying “no”   Severe winter weather   Awareness raising never ends   Supporting a large and varied volunteer group   Changing funding landscape   Convincing Council &

true to Food Trains elderly founders   Providing a simple, easy to use, affordable service   Giving universal food access to older people without means or health testing   Many national awards and recognition for volunteers   Successfully scaling up from regional to national

Our Social Enterprise principles? •  We always acknowledge that we will never be fully self

sustaining as it would have a detrimental effect on the people we exist to help – we would have to charge our customers more for deliveries excluding the people most in need •  It’s not about generating as much surplus as possible, it is about providing a quality service to the community with as much outside support as possible •  We concentrate on being enterprising in other ways e.g. generating support locally from groups and individuals for fundraising, working with local garages rather than national provider, charging statutory agencies expenses for the expertise of our team, creating partnerships with local business which has a positive financial impact for us or provides a saving of time •  Developing additional services using current resources to generate some additional income e.g. Food Train ‘EXTRA’ , Food Train Friends, while still responding to needs

Where we fit with policy All our Futures & Reshaping Care for Older People Planning for a Scotland with an Ageing Population Reshaping Care for Older People Recipe for Success Scotland’s National Food & Drink Policy Age, Home and Community: A strategy for housing Scotland’s older people Nationally 5 Strategic Objectives 16 National Outcomes 45 National Indicators Strategies

Locally Single Outcome Agreements Community Planning Food, Health and Social Care

Why does it work ...? •  Food access is overlooked in Free Personal Care

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and is very costly for statutory agencies to deliver, we provide more for less but without compromise on quality and choice Growing numbers of frail older people; good nutrition is vital to physical and mental health and well being Wide variety of volunteering opportunities for all ages and abilities, gives people a place and part in their community Offers flexibility, easy access, affordable , provides good value to its funders and members Solid partnerships and willingness to do whatever possible to meet the needs of older people

For the right reason – we all need to eat!

Thank you for inviting me to talk about my favourite subject!! Does anyone have any questions?

You can visit us at www.thefoodtrain.co.uk