‘Come Dine With Us’ Harriet Gibbon Chief Executive Age UK County Durham

‘Come Dine with Us’ is an intergenerational project. Aims to improve older people’s ability to access, cook & enjoy healthy food together. 18 month pilot funded by Big Lottery Silver Dreams Fund. Piloted in 4 areas of County Durham.

Need for the project Consulted over 400 older people countywide to ascertain their: Perceived or actual barriers to accessing & eating health food Shopping habits Physical access to shops Levels of knowledge relating to healthy eating Any education & practical support needs that they had

Barriers to healthy eating included Higher cost of healthy food Difficulty carrying shopping Lack of affordable or accessible transport Food sold in quantities too large Lack of income particularly in rural areas using oil fired central heating We also found: Older people who do high mileage to reach shops were concerned about food shopping when they can no longer drive. Carers want to know how to use the Internet for food shopping when they can’t leave home. Carers enjoy participating in activities which they can attend with the cared for person.

Testing new solutions Piloting development of lunch clubs in non-traditional settings to feed body & mind. Locations include a museum, primary school, college, Civic Hall, supermarket & the staff restaurant of a large company. Model has also been used to save a traditional lunch club where the volunteer cook was ‘retiring’ by connecting it to the local school who now supply the meals.

Piloting development of local ‘dining circles’ Encouraging & supporting older people to take turns to cook for each other in their own homes or to go out together for a meal Developing & piloting differing types of ‘Food Shopping Clubs’ in partnership with older people. Encouraging them to buy and share larger packet sizes to save money On-line shopping clubs Use of community minibus Car & taxi sharing

Development of an accredited nutrition course for older people An interactive course to raise awareness of good nutrition as we get older. It includes: Cookery demonstrations and food tasting Ideas for meals Board game A colourful and useful resource pack for participants

Have included: Provision of training to access online shopping. Grow to eat activities - Encouraging people to grow their own vegetables in tubs/small section of an herbaceous border. Training volunteers to provide pro- active signposting to other services & support beneficial to the older person’s situation & act as ‘Buddies’ to befriend isolated older people who lack the confidence to initially attend activities alone. Other activities

Evaluation & Learning Very high demand for lunch club places. We had to introduce a screening process to prioritise beneficiaries. Waiting list for the nutrition course. Our partners were very positive & willing to make changes where possible at their own expense. Partnership working has enhanced existing local services & underused facilities to deliver new sustainable activities for older people. Kept partners’ staff busy over quiet periods (winter months), provided publicity for partners, increased local employment & encouraged more customers. Whilst initially keen on ‘Dining Circles’ many prefer our new type of lunch clubs..

Next steps The project has been awarded a Big Lottery Silver Dreams Flagship Grant. We are taking this opportunity to rename the project ‘Come Eat Together’. We are expanding the project to other areas of County Durham.

Thank you