The ImpACT Youth Kitchen welcomed residents from Jewish Care’s Sunridge Court residential care home, last week.
The pilot intergenerational project brought teen volunteers and residents together to prepare food, using surplus food from Barnet Food Hub for delivery to a local food bank.
Project ImpACT is an award-winning youth volunteering charity which connects young Jewish teens, empowering them to work together and make a positive impact. The charity inspires and engages teens to volunteer and contribute to the community and beyond in meaningful ways. Jewish Care is the largest health and social care organisation for the Jewish community in London and the South East, touching the lives of 12,000 people each week.
The two generations chatted and got to know each whilst working side by side, sharing cooking skills and preparing delicious nutritious vegan dishes including White Bean Falafel with Tahini Dressing and Summer Couscous Salad. The teens and residents cooked together in pairs; preparing the fresh herbs, the falafel mixture and forming into falafel shapes. Background music included special requests by the residents which included ‘Time to Say Goodbye’. At the end of the session the meals were packaged up and delivered to Clandon House Homeless Shelter in Finchley.
ImpACT Youth Kitchen is Project ImpACT’s flagship programme which supports people of all faiths by providing meals for local food banks and homeless shelters.
Jakub Walczak, Social Care Co-ordinator at Jewish Care’s Sunridge Court care home, said:
“The project was incredibly worthwhile. Intergenerational initiatives demonstrate how important it is to create opportunities for people of all ages to find purpose and meaning by supporting others as part of the community. The Project ImpACT coordinators and youth volunteers interacted really well with the residents helping to make this an enjoyable event for everyone. The session provided a very active and pleasant Sunday morning for our residents, who love good company.”
Intergenerational activity connects people of different generations to share skills, promote mutual respect and improve mental health and wellbeing. In a survey conducted by new charity Intergenerational England:
- 86% of UK adults agree that mixing with people of different age groups/generations can generate mutual respect between generations
- 81% of UK adults agree intergenerational connection can reduce loneliness
- And 76% believe it can improve our mental health or general health and wellbeing
Speaking about the event Jewish Care Sunridge Court resident, Paul, said “It was very good and it was nice to be around young people, the activity was also really enjoyable”.
Another resident Tibby added: “I really enjoyed the outing. I am glad I decided to come after all, because I met a person who knew friends of mine from South Africa. It was really worth it.”
Asked if she would like to join in the future, she expressed a resounding yes.
At a time when 25% of people in London are living in poverty and food banks are experiencing a huge increase in demand, the youth kitchen has delivered more than 25,000 meals to local food banks and shelters, helping to feed some of the most vulnerable members of society.
Anna Freedman, Project ImpACT’s, ImpACT Youth Kitchen Manager said:
“It was a really lovely and special event, having the young and old interact over a shared purpose and seeing each other energised by the union.”
Founder and Director of Project ImpACT, Chayli Fehler said:
“We are delighted that the pilot intergenerational session was enjoyed by everyone and such a great success. It was wonderful to see our volunteers interact with the residents in such a meaningful way. Not only were they sharing skills and finding out about each other, but they were also using surplus food to cook for those in need. It was wonderful to watch the two generations come together in such a positive and joyful environment.”
Jewish Care’s Director of Care Services, Rachel Jones, added:
“It is so empowering for Jewish Care residents to be involved and to volunteer in community projects, supporting others and making an impact. It makes such a difference for older people to be able to show they care and have an important contribution to make, together with the young volunteers. We know that intergenerational activities, which make special connections like this, have a benefit on the wellbeing of everyone involved across the generations and we would like to thank Project ImpACT for inviting our residents to partner with them in this great initiative.”
Project ImpACT is proud to have developed long standing partnerships with over 38 UK charities. The new ImpACT Youth Kitchen plans to build on this successful pilot to launch more intergenerational volunteering programmes and events next term.