Spirits of Our Community Awards 2022 Winner Announced

An innovative new store designed to tackle food poverty in the Coatbridge area has been unveiled as the winning recipient of International Beverage's inaugural Spirit of Our Community Awards.

A top prize of £10,000 has been donated by International Beverage to GlenboigLarder@BHS: a new sustainable community resource providing subsidised food shopping to anyone in the area experiencing food poverty, and to do so with dignity.

Known as ‘The Larder’, the initiative is being set up jointly by community health charity Glenboig Development Trust and Buchanan High Additional Support Needs School in Coatbridge.

Opening on 8^th March and located in a newly assigned part of the school’s foyer, the store will initially open every Wednesday to sell fresh, nutritious grocery essentials and recipe boxes to members at a subsidised rate. For a fixed cost of £4 shoppers can buy goods to the value of around £20 - £25, as well as access healthy recipes, cooking skills and advice about other food and welfare resources in the area.

Crucially The Larder aims to become a vibrant community hub, run by staff, pupils and volunteers for everyone in the school and surrounding area: overcoming stigma and ensuring the experience of using the resource is enjoyable and enriching. Young people in Buchanan High School’s senior years with additional support needs will also gain valuable work experience at the new shop, learning retail, budgeting, communication, teamwork and social skills as they go.

The £10,000 donation will be used for the store fit-out, to buy equipment such as cash registers, cold storage, staff uniforms and baskets, and to stock the shelves with an initial range of food and supplies. 

Spirit of Our Community Awards organiser, International Beverage Business Support Manager Eileen Rae and her colleagues visited Buchanan High School in person to share the good news with The Larder’s development team. Eileen said:

"I can’t think of a better cause for our top prize this year than this wonderful new resource for the Coatbridge community. Food poverty is an increasing challenge for many families in our area, and our judges were extremely impressed with how The Larder’s team is tackling it, with so much positive energy and creativity. There’s an incredible can-do attitude at the school and we could see how quickly our donation was going to make a tangible difference to the lives of pupils, their families and the wider network. It will also provide so much more than food. There’s support, advice, friendship, fun and true community, which we believe is something well worth investing in. Our congratulations go to everyone at The Larder and we look forward to being a part of the project and watching it flourish in the months ahead."

Christine McNally, Senior Care Manager at Glenboig Development Trust added:

"The Larder is an important and positive initiative to meet a specific need in Coatbridge. This is one of the most deprived areas of North Lanarkshire so initiatives which alleviate poverty within a community setting are crucial. There is a heavy reliance on foodbanks but there are also many people in need who won’t access support due to social stigma, so we have to find ways to make them feel safe and supported by the community.

"We’re grateful to International Beverage for their support and we will work hard to make The Larder a focal point for the community accessible to everyone - pupils, parents, carers, staff, transport providers, escorts and visitors to the campus. Although we will start our Larder in Buchanan High School, we hope to unite with the other two schools on our joint campus to increase membership, ultimately rolling out our project to the wider community."

The International Beverage Spirit of Our Community Awards celebrate and reward the people and organisations working hard to make a difference to others in their local community. Judged by a mix of International Beverage employees and external associates, the 2022 awards were open to any charity or not for profit organisation based in the Airdrie and Coatbridge area surrounding the company’s head office. Two additional runner up donations of £1,000 each were also announced: to the Moira Anderson Foundation’s counselling programme for people who have experienced childhood sexual abuse; and the Scot Baby Box Appeal which provides welcome backpacks for Ukrainian child refugees arriving in the area. 

The scheme is our biggest charity commitment to date. Members of the team plan to take up volunteering opportunities with selected charities where possible, and an announcement about the 2023 Awards scheme is expected later in 2023.