Always a different experience

16 November 2023

Volunteer’s Story

I haven’t been volunteering for Cooking Up for long and have only helped at three or four of the sessions and each one has been such a different experience.   

Firstly, I was paired with a woman who needed a break from caring for her elderly brother.  She could cook but was keen to learn a new recipe or two as well as have some time out and meet new people. It was veggie paella this time.

In Ham in the summer holidays, I worked with a refugee boy of around 11 years old.  He was so keen to learn.  His mother and sister watched proudly as he chopped and sliced onions and garlic, telling me he was making tea for his family.  His sister was absolutely sure she didn’t like any of the vegetables in this recipe, but she did try and did like it. 

Working alongside an autistic boy and his mum in Twickenham, she told me she loved cooking, but it was very hard to do at home with two children.  He told me several times he definitely wouldn’t eat what we were preparing (smoky bean burgers) and would be having something from the freezer.  By the time they left, he had eaten two. 

In Hampton, a lady in a wheelchair said she mostly cooked recipes using mince.  By the time we had finished egg fried rice with broccoli and leeks, she was planning to invite her neighbour round for supper together.

I met a woman who loved cooking, but said she had no confidence when it came to trying new recipes.  Her daughter didn’t like what she usually cooked, and she could do with some help.

Curiously, setting out the ingredients and clearing up afterwards with the volunteers has been more fun than one might imagine. It is extraordinary how it all comes together.  At the end of each session, after the washing up and clearing away, who would know we’d been there?

So many different people, ages, stages, skills and abilities, all coming along for a variety of reasons.  What they take with them when they leave isn’t just healthy vegetarian food for themselves, friends and families.  The experience is so much more than the sum of the parts and has given me the opportunity to step into their lives for a short while.  Win, win.

‘Cooking Up’ a storm at United Response

Cooking up partner with local organisations, this is the perspective from one of our partners, United Response.

31 July 2023
Nora Kerezovic, Creative Engagement Lead

People we support in Richmond enjoyed taking part in a five-week course with Cooking Up, learning how to make some healthy new recipes using affordable ingredients.

At a wellbeing event hosted by local charity Ruils in Whitton Community Centre, I distinctly remember Enterprise Manager Matthew Campbell, beaming with enthusiasm, declaring:

Nora, I’ve just met the most inspiring and innovative cooking team. They are all about fresh ingredients, healthy eating and helping people to learn the skills of cooking. You’ll love them! He was absolutely right. When I saw people we support, paired with Cooking Up volunteers, preparing fresh vegetables and learning how to make vegetarian ‘rainbow’ paella, I was full of admiration.

What is Cooking Up?

Cooking Up is a not-for-profit organisation, which aims to reduce food poverty and improve the health and wellbeing of people living in Richmond by teaching them how to cook good-quality, tasty food at home. They recently hosted five weekly sessions for eight people we support and guests supported by Richmond Aid.

When everyone was sat in the garden after one of the sessions, enjoying the delicious lunch they’d just cooked, I invited Chairperson Janet Hilton to tell me how this successful initiative came together:

“John [Harrison-Church], Belinda [Marozzi] and I set up the charity just over a year ago. It was all John’s idea – he is a keen cook. We had a common concern that people aren’t learning to cook from scratch anymore, which means they can’t teach their kids to cook and this lack of skill is passing down the generations. It’s the reason why people are eating so many takeaways and ready meals, and becoming unhealthier as a result. Health and wellbeing“More people are overweight now than have ever been, especially children,” Janet continued. “We talked to some social prescribers attached to GP surgeries in Richmond – weight management is one of the top three reasons for referrals to them.” Secretary and trustee Belinda has a background in nutrition and researches all the recipes for the sessions. It’s evident that there’s no ‘Here’s one I prepared earlier!’ with Cooking Up. They cook a vegetarian main meal from scratch, suggesting meat or fish you could add to the dish if people want to. Janet said the emphasis is on healthy, tasty, in-season ingredients, but always at a low cost: We aim for ingredients to cost less than £1.50 per person. We cook only on induction hobs as ovens are costing a lot to heat up nowadays. It’s much more expensive to eat pre-prepared food rather than cook from scratch so people are really suffering through the current cost of living crisis.We can see this from the massive increase in reliance on foodbanks. No kitchen nightmares here – just smiles! Cooking in the community Janet also explained that using hobs means Cooking Up’s sessions are fully-mobile: “We can teach six to 12 people anywhere. A lesson lasts for 90 minutes and clients can eat after the lesson, or take food home to eat later. We teach in schools too. ”She tells me that overall wellbeing is the driving force behind Cooking Up: Mental health issues can be eased via the social benefits of cooking and eating together.In our classes, we see people really starting to relax and enjoy themselves as they become more confident cooks.And chatting with each other and with our volunteers makes for a fun session.Having taken part in the session, I can certainly testify to that!

What went well
Janet and the team said they ‘really enjoyed’ hosting the course: There were no complaints about the taste! Eating together added an extra social dimension to the classes and we were lucky enough to have great weather and access to an amazing garden where everyone could have a home-cooked lunch. Enterprise and Community Support Manager, Matthew Campbell, agreed: The Cooking Up sessions were amazing. Having met the team at a number of community events, I knew their energy and passion would shine through. The volunteers were excellent at supporting our group and ensured nobody was left out. They taught different skills over the five weeks and showed us how to cook meals from different cultures. My housemates were very impressed when I cooked one of the recipes for them! Thank you Cooking Up, we look forward to working with you again.

Nora Kerezovic is Creative Engagement Lead for United Response’s Enterprise hub in Teddington.