Volunteering for Compass Scotland
Compass Scotland, leading provider of catering and support services, has launched a bespoke volunteer programme with West Lothian-based charity, The Larder, to help tackle poverty and hunger.
The Larder was founded in 2010 to address rising youth unemployment in West Lothian. Since then, the organisation has helped over 5,000 people through training and delivered over 210,000 meals since 2020 to support people experiencing food insecurity to eat with dignity.
Supporting its Catalyst Kitchen project, four Compass Scotland volunteers will spend two days every month giving their time and knowledge to help the charity. This will involve preparing and delivering meals, supporting in the community cafes in Strathbrock and Blackburn, and working in the bakery. It is planned that over 50 volunteers will give over 400 hours of their time across the year to support the charity as part of the programme.
There will also be four culinary training days a year, run by Compass Scotland chefs who will support and mentor individuals within the charity to develop their hospitality skills. Supporting The Larder’s head chef, head baker and bakery team with bespoke training plans, Compass Scotland chefs will give their time, knowledge and experience to support the charity.
The partnership will support Compass’ Our Social Promise, which incorporates its Mission to a Million campaign – aiming to positively impact one million lives by 2030.
The announcement comes shortly after the 40th anniversary of Volunteers’ Week, which this year ran Monday 3 June – Sunday 9 June 2024.
David Hay, Managing Director of Compass Scotland, said: "We are proud to officially partner with The Larder to support our Compass Scotland volunteer programme and continue to support this worthwhile charity. Volunteering is a wonderful way to give back to society and help others, and we hope that this new partnership will look to inspire more people and make a lasting impact in the Scottish communities we serve.”
Angela Moohan, Founder and CEO of The Larder, said: “We have worked with Compass Scotland over the past two years to ensure that no one in West Lothian goes hungry. We have been incredibly grateful for their support to date, and we are delighted that we are now moving our partnership forward through the volunteer programme. Working together will add valuable resources towards our aim of tackling poverty, empowering individuals and transforming communities.”
Laura Neville, Head of Social Value for Compass Group UK & Ireland said: “Through Our Social Promise we have committed to improving the lives of 1 million people by 2030. A key element of this is supporting local communities through volunteering. Giving time will make a huge difference to the charities and communities we live and work in, generate social value and gives the opportunity to have fun and team build along the way.”
