Volunteers at a Leeds community service hub have been left "gutted" after thugs stole equipment from their kitchen which feeds hundreds of families.
On Sunday, April 16, Kirstall Valley Farm in Kirkstall Road, discovered the worktops, pans, and kitchen sink in their Unit 11 KVDT kitchen used to help the Kirkstall community had all been stolen. Every week up to 140 meals are made for struggling families in the area, and 40 meals were provided over Easter on behalf of the farm, and Butcher Hill Community Food Pantry.
A spokesperson for Kirkstall Valley Farm said: "It's not just the cost of replacing these things - although that's bad enough - it's the volunteer time and effort that has gone into making a serviceable kitchen"
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Kirstall Valley Development Trust, working with the farm, pantry, and community hub, is an inclusive Community Benefit Society that aims to support the local community of Kirkstall. A team of staff and volunteers run various activities, services, events, and campaigns to bring the community together.
Speaking about what happened, Adele Rae, who works for Kirstall Valley Development Trust, added: "Gutted that overnight someone has come onto Kirkstall Valley Farm and stolen our stainless steel kitchen worktops, pans and even the kitchen sink - they actually cut through the pipework to take that!
"I was just totting up how many people and households KVDT feed each week - 70 to 80 households from our food pantry, 30 to 40 from our community café, and 100 plus vegetable boxes each week. Our staff and volunteers work their socks off - they don't need to have things made even more challenging.
"Now we just need to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and start again." Adele has set up a Go Fund Me page to try and get the farm back on its feet.
She said: "One of the projects we have been working on is creating an effective community space at the farm where we run play schemes, tots groups, private parties and community events. We are absolutely gutted."
One eyewitness said: "I stopped five teenagers setting fires at the side of the got river and was given abuse and chased around Kirkstall as I feared they had a knife until the police arrived and took me home."
A spokesperson for Armley Labour Party said: "So sorry to hear this. Came to a smashing party at the farm last summer and loved the space. You really don’t deserve this. It’s an attack on the community and a huge resource."
A community member added: "I would be notifying all local scrapyards as I would imagine that is why they were taken. So sad that even charitable organisations are considered legitimate targets by these thieves."
To donate to the Go Fund Me page for Kirkstall Valley Farm, click here.
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