LFC legend Robbie Fowler said "too many Liverpool families are struggling to put food on the table" as he helped to launch a new plan to help with the cost of living.
The former Reds striker has teamed up with West Derby MP Ian Byrne and is helping to fund the pilot of a 'Scouse Kitchen' project - which it is hoped will result in a citywide network of community kitchens.
Fowler has donated £18,000 to help get the project off the ground. The money will fund the first ever Scouse Kitchen to help hungry families in West Derby. The cash will also help community food pantries across the city.
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The Scouse Kitchen concept has been influenced by the research of Professor Bryce Evans at Liverpool Hope University, who believes communal dining could replace foodbanks in tackling food poverty in the UK. It is being led by Mr Byrne, who as well as being the Labour MP for West Derby, is one of the founders of the Fans Supporting Foodbanks group and leads the Right to Food campaign.
He said: “The Scouse Kitchen pilot we are running this week in my West Derby constituency is a much-needed intervention for many families living here. I have mums, dads and carers in West Derby who cannot afford to put food on their family’s table, and I wanted to provide this opportunity for them to sit down together as a family in a restaurant setting and eat a meal together in dignity, for free.
“We know that food poverty causes endless problems for children, affecting their educational attainment and life chances and leading to poor health, reduced life expectancy, malnutrition and obesity.
“Food poverty also has a huge impact on human dignity and social cohesion in our polarised nation of food banks next to investment banks. Too many of our people experience despair and humiliation every day and my aim with this project is to provide a safe space in which West Derby families can eat together in dignity. Social eating, such as we are trialling in the Scouse Kitchen, is an important step forward in how communities respond to hunger.
"It has none of the stigma too often associated with foodbanks and gives families an opportunity to eat together around a table. Dignity is key and we believe this model of social eating will provide that. Food pantries are also considered to offer a more dignified response to hunger than foodbanks, and we now operate several such pantries across Liverpool."
Former Reds and England star Fowler said: "I am delighted to be able to support the fantastic work of Ian Byrne MP and Fans Supporting Foodbanks in this way. The Community Kitchen idea is inspiring, and I am proud to be part of it.
"Too many families in Liverpool and across the UK are really struggling to put food on the table and that is completely unacceptable in this day and age. Food pantries and Community Kitchens provide dignity as well as food to those who are struggling, and I am humbled to be able to help.”
Dave Kelly, Chair of Fans Supporting Foodbanks, said: “Massive thanks to Robbie Fowler from all at Fans Supporting Foodbanks for this very generous donation. We hope that the piloting of a community kitchen here in Liverpool can serve as a template going forward for a national rollout across the Fans Supporting Foodbanks network.”
The Scouse Kitchen pilot is taking place at St Celia's Junior School in Tuebrook, it is running between 5pm and 6.30pm from Tuesday 11 to Thursday 13 October.
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