A Bishop Auckland community project is set to benefit from a special initiative from Scrivens Opticians & Hearing Care, supporting local families through its Family & Youth Hub.
Launched this year, Scrivens’ Branch Out with Kindness initiative invites community groups across England and Wales to share ideas for how a £100 gift could brighten lives in their local area. The Bishop Auckland branch on Cockton Hill chose to support Little Chefs Big Chefs, a community interest company based at the LCBC Community Hub in St. Helen Auckland, in recognition of its work with local families, children and young people.
Little Chefs Big Chefs began by teaching healthy cooking through fun, hands-on workshops and has since grown into a wider source of community support. Today, it helps people of all ages improve wellbeing, build practical skills and make lasting connections. It runs cookery sessions and an affordable Eco Market, where surplus food collected from local supermarkets is made available to prevent it from reaching landfill. It also runs a monthly Family & Youth Hub which offers activities, a light meal and refreshments, access to laptops and printers, and support or signposting for families who need it.
Together, these initiatives create welcoming spaces where memories are made and financial and social barriers are broken down.
Scrivens’ £100 Branch Out with Kindness gift will support the Family & Youth Hub, helping the organisation continue to provide this welcoming, pay-as-you-can space for local families.
Little Chefs Big Chefs was nominated for the award by Jane Evans, a customer of the Scrivens Bishop Auckland branch who also supports the organisation’s Family & Youth Hub sessions. She put the group forward in recognition of the difference it makes to families in the community.
Scrivens Bishop Auckland branch manager, Joanne Bestford, said: “When we launched Branch Out with Kindness, we wanted to celebrate the everyday acts of kindness happening in our community. Little Chefs Big Chefs stood out straight away. The team does so much for local families and we know how much of a difference the Family & Youth Hub makes to the people who use it. We’re really proud to support them and hope our gift helps them continue that brilliant work.”
Joanne Iceton, Founder and Chief Executive of Little Chefs Big Chefs, said: “Our Family & Youth Hub is such an important part of what we do, giving local families a warm, welcoming space to spend time together, access support and enjoy a meal, whatever they can afford. Being nominated by one of our own team members, Jane, means so much to us and this gift from Scrivens will make a real difference to the families who come through our doors.”
Jane Evans added: “I see first-hand at every session how much the Hub means to the families who come along and we’re proud to offer a space where people feel supported and part of a community. I nominated Little Chefs Big Chefs because I know exactly how far a gift like this can go. I’ve been a customer at Scrivens for years and heard about Branch Out with Kindness while having my annual eye test. I’m absolutely thrilled they’ve chosen to support such a brilliant cause.”
Scrivens Opticians & Hearing Care is a family-run business established in 1938, with 166 high street stores across England and Wales and over 1,000 employees. For more information, visit www.scrivens.com.
