This section covers three main areas:
- Should we encourage attendees to bring food to share?
- Key learning from the Food Glorious Food project
- How should we facilitate attendees bringing food to share?
Should we encourage attendees to bring food to share?
What are the benefits?
- Social citizenship: opportunity for meaningful contribution and participation
- Bolsters identity
- Bolsters self-worth
- Opportunity for spiritual or cultural expression: Religiously and/or culturally important to some
- Encourages purposeful activity outside of the group sessions themselves
- Avoids detrimental effect regarding all of the above that may result from refusing the bringing and sharing of food, which may be very important to some
What are the risks?
- Potential harm and liability for that (allergies, food hygiene issues, unhealthy ingredients)
- Risk of eating more than is beneficial, nutritional imbalance, disrupting meal routines etc.
- Social pressure
- Potential offense if food refused
Key learning from the Food Glorious Food project
- Know your target membership and how important this is to them – if this is important to them, it’s important to acknowledge/accommodate this in some way in the group
- Allowing for sharing of food can seem risky and hard to manage, but potentially has significant benefits for some – and not allowing for it could actually negatively impact the wellbeing of some
- Allowing sharing of food can be done within controlled limits as an effective and valuable compromise
- Be aware of risk assessment and liability responsibilities however, especially if the group is a paid for service
How should we facilitate attendees bringing food to share?
What helps?
- Allow within clearly defined limits – e.g. only on certain occasions, only certain types of food using certain methods or ingredients (with clear guidance/ suggestions for what might be suitable to bring)
- Ensuring bringing and sharing is optional, not expected
- ‘Subtle vigilance’ with regards to managing how what is brought is received
- Staff/volunteer awareness of the attendees needs and dietary requirements
What challenges might we need to think about?
- Managing what is brought – is it safe or appropriate to offer to group, offered in way that can be monitored safely?
- Managing expectations and responses of those within the group regarding shared food
- Managing dietary requirements/restrictions (including due to faith).