We hope you have all had a wonderful Christmas and a happy start to your New Year. [if !supportLineBreakNewLine] [endif]We have had a cracking start to the year with many updates, so bear with us as we give you a more than usually wordy newsletter. We promise it’s worth the read!

We want to say a huge thank you to everyone who supported us over the past two months during the Christmas period! We have experienced such warmth and generosity from so many people and have been overwhelmed with donations for the Foodbank especially but also those who donated to Pecan to help all our projects. [if !supportLineBreakNewLine] [endif]This year, we saw the Pantry kick off their first session on a Friday to accommodate the holiday timetable changes.

The Foodbank had a busy Christmas, giving out 100 gift cards to families in need as well as the regular sessions running. The Foodbank team is still sorting through Christmas donations from all our generous donors.

Our employment team had a good end to the year and have a number of training courses happening this month.

Pecan has two vacancies, Head of Operations and the Peckham Pantry Manager, open until next week Monday 20th January 2020. Pecan is also looking for new trustees to join our board. Please share these opportunities with everyone in your network! [if !supportLineBreakNewLine] [endif]We will be sending out a newsletter about all the events that Pecan has places in this year so if you’re interested in finding out more, get in touch!

Peckham Pantry

Peckham Pantry opened on Friday the 3rd January this year, due to being shut for two weeks over the festive period. In the past two weeks, while it’s felt quieter, we have had steady numbers in the past two sessions.

Southwark Foodbank

Christmas is the hardest time of year for many and is a challenge every year as we see demand for support go up. Seeing the community come together and the kindness of strangers brought together under a common purpose of helping one another, is a profoundly beautiful picture of the community we live in and gives us hope that we may yet see change happen. [if !supportLineBreakNewLine] [endif]In the last few weeks of December, we were able to give out 100 gift cards to families in need through our Feed a Family Campaign and saw many more walk in the doors of our centers.

We were completely overwhelmed with the response we had from the public, with many individuals, churches, schools, businesses, and community organisations giving their time and donations in December.

We can’t thank everybody enough for their generosity over the past couple of months, which has impacted so many people in a very real and positive way.

Foodbank Friday on the 20th December was a wonderful experience all around! We were supported by many volunteers and the London Oriana Choir. We collected an amazing £5,711.46 in total! [if !supportLineBreakNewLine] [endif]Thank you to everyone who supported us and stopped to donate and wish us well!

Employment

The Employment team is running first aid training and health and safety training this month. They are also running an interviews skills workshop towards the end of the month. [if !supportLineBreakNewLine] [endif]January is usually a slower month for referrals and as always, we are looking for more clients for our programmes.

HOurBank

Book Club

On the 16th January 2020, Hourbank started a book club. Moving from the success of the Creative Writing Workshops, Hourbank will be running a book club weekly from 16th January to 5th March 2020. [if !supportLineBreakNewLine] [endif]The first book the group is discussing is John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men”

Please email hourbank@pecan.org.uk for more information and to register your place or see the website for more information.

Women’s Service

The Women’s Service held their annual Christmas event in December which was a resounding success. The Women’s Choir performed Christmas songs and a selection of other favourites from the year. [if !supportLineBreakNewLine] [endif]This year, the Women’s Service is continuing on from the Shark Cage Course and offering the Sharks and Zombies course. There will also be a storytelling course this month as well as two new courses, a Reading Group and Healing Trauma course in the Southwark and Lewisham Hubs respectively.

Events [if !supportLineBreakNewLine] [endif]We will be releasing an events newsletter in January, with our whole line up of events for the year. We have a number of places in sporting events that we want to share and get people involved in. If you are keen to challenge yourself this year and help us raise money for the work we do, then get in touch! We have places in events like Prudential Ride London Surrey, Vitality 10k, and are able to secure places in a number of other events.

If you have an event that you are taking part in and would like to nominate us as your charity, and for all event related inquiries, please get in contact with carey.evans@pecan.org.uk.

Vacancies

Trustee

Unrenumerated, travel expenses paid | Based in Peckham​

Pecan currently has seven Trustees, two of whom have stated their intention to stand down in the next six months. We are therefore seeking to replace our retiring trustees and grow our number to eight or nine to help spread the responsibilities and add your experience and insight to our goal of enabling people to positively contribute to society.

• Are you a committed Christian?

• Do you have the skills and passion required to steer our strategic direction?

• Do you have business acumen or are you social media savvy?

• Are you familiar with the Southwark community or have you experienced Pecan’s services

Closing Date: Monday 10th February, 9am ​Interview Date: 17th-28th February

Peckham Pantry Manager

​£32,000 | 36 hours per week including Saturdays and regular evenings

Based in Pantry locations around Peckham

This is new and exciting post has been made possible by funding dedicated to the development of Peckham Pantry. Your role will enable the provision of healthy food to people in our community who would otherwise struggle to feed their families. You will run and develop Peckham Pantry, managing a team of staff and volunteers, contributing to the campaign to eradicate food poverty.

• Do you have a passion for social justice?

• Are you people-focused?

• Do you have a background in retail or customer service?

• Do you have experience of managing a social enterprise?​

Closing Date: Monday 20th January, 9am Interview Date: Monday 10th February

Head of Operations

​£41,000 pro rata | 21.5 hours per week | Based in Peckham

This is an exciting new post that has been created due to the recent expansion of Pecan’s programmes and staff team. Your role will enable Pecan’s frontline team to deliver the highest possible standards of service delivery. You will line manage three programme managers to support in the delivery and development of their contracts and services. You will also support the CEO with organisational development and strategic direction.​

• Are you a people person capable of motivating and encouraging your team?

• Are you passionate about making a meaningful contribution to Pecan’s work?

• Do you have experience of contract management?

• Do you ave experience in the community, employment, women’s or criminal justice sectors​​​

Closing Date: Monday 20th January, 9am Interview Date: Round 1 – 5th February, Round 2 – 6th February

Volunteer Opportunities

The Peckham Pantry is looking for friendly, helpful volunteers to help run our community pantry on Wednesdays for 3 hour shifts, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Food Safety Level 2 is desirable but if you do not have it, we will provide the necessary training. Our reception is manned by volunteers and we are looking for more people willing to give a morning or afternoon of their week on a regular basis to be a part of the day-to-day running of Pecan’s office. If you are interested in finding out more information, please email Sarah at sarah.ibikunle@pecan.org.uk