Surplus Food Hub Volunteer

Surplus Food Hub Volunteers

Healthy Living Platform is a Lambeth-based charity helping local communties to live healthily and sustainably. We focus on connecting people through food across neighbourhoods.

We're looking for volunteers able to commit to weekly shifts at our Surplus Food Hub in Brixton.

If you're able to drive a van, that's a big help!

Shifts

Monday - Friday, 9am - 1pm

or

Tuesday, Wednesday, 1pm - 4pm.

Get in touch

Please fill out this form to register your interest: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/nHUr6KhJ73

Purpose of the Role:

The HLP Surplus Food Hub has been supporting communities through food since the pandemic. Working as part of a small, busy team you will receive daily deliveries of food from our surplus food partners and wholesale suppliers. Based at our small warehouse, you will help redistribute the food across the borough.

You will interact daily with a range of community groups, understanding specific food needs and requirements and updating information as appropriate. Food will be redistributed either by collection from our Hub or delivering to their sites with our Hub vehicles. You will be fit and healthy and ready for manual lifting of boxes, crates and sacks of food of up to 25kg with assistance from trolleys, pallet trucks and an electric pallet stacker (training will be provided).

You will work closely with the Hub Coordinator, helping to record food in and out and adapting to a busy changing schedule as requests come in. The hub team includes a small, diverse group of regular and changing volunteers.

Requirements:

• Able and willing to handle heavy crates, boxes, sacks up to 25kg
• A full UK driver's license (optional)
• Commitment to equality, diversity, and anti-discriminatory practice
• Respect for others within a diverse team and client group

Main Responsibilities:

• Receiving deliveries from surplus food partners and other suppliers
• Ensuring food and products are stacked or stored safely per food safety guidelines
• Preparing orders for distribution to community groups
• Adhering to health and safety standards, especially in manual handling
• Delivering orders by Healthy Living Platform’s delivery vehicles (if able to drive)

About Healthy Living Platform:

• Surplus Food Hub: Supports around 2000 households weekly through redistributing surplus food.
• Community Pantries: Low-cost food shops operating 3 times a week, supporting up to 150 households weekly.
• Community Kitchen + Catering: Offers cooking opportunities, space for community groups, local food businesses, education, and training.
• Food Ambassadors: short training courses to increase healthy food knowledge and skills across the community.