Bournemouth Foodbank is set to launch a brand-new Community Café within its Boscombe Foodbank Centre, in collaboration with local interior design company, KTM Design.

The new café will serve freshly cooked and nutritionally balanced meals to foodbank users, members of the public and organisations operating within the Foodbank Centre. The café’s purpose is to bring the community together in a welcoming, collaborative format, while offering those in need additional support in line with Bournemouth Foodbank’s More Than Food philosophy. Support includes financial advice and upskilling via training, such as cookery and kitchen staff courses.

The launch of the Community Café comes following a busy year for Bournemouth Foodbank, with the charity collecting more than 71,000kg in food donations and serving up 85,000 meals to those in need in 2021. January 2022 alone has seen Bournemouth Foodbank feed more than 1,000 people.

Debbie Coombes, Project Director at Bournemouth Foodbank commented: “We are delighted to be working with the team at KTM Design to bring our Community Café to life. Our vision is to create a space where the people in our community can come to be refreshed with conversations and friendships.

“We want to see people that have found themselves on the fringes of society being restored. Through the food provision we provide, together with the collaboration of other organisations that will share the space, we will be able to help people find permanent solutions to the challenges they face, whether it is the need for food, financial or social help.”

Bournemouth Food Bank appointed KTM Design to help deliver their vision of the new café, with the interior design company offering its services free of charge.

Katie Thomas, founder of KTM Design commented: “Bournemouth Foodbank has been a lifeline for thousands of local families over the past year, so we’re proud to support them as they take on this exciting new project.

“Our design ideas centre around creating a warm, welcoming space which not only encourages foodbank users, but also members of the public and employees to use the area as a social café. We’ve included large tables within different areas of the café, allowing visitors to sit and play games. The community feel will be amplified by large motivational words displayed in fun, bright graphics. We also opted for an earthy colour palette with rustic woods, contrasted against clean, white metro tiles to showcase a relaxing, comfortable environment. Herb pots will be dotted around the space to celebrate the natural elements, while being practical for the kitchen to use.

“We’re delighted to be involved in such a meaningful project which will build strong bridges within the local community and instil a sense of belonging for those in need.”

Bournemouth Foodbank offers emergency food and support for people in crisis within the local area. The charity operates four Foodbank Centres in and around the town – Bournemouth Community Church (Lifehouse) in Moordown, St George’s Foodbank Centre in Boscombe, Lansdown Church (Castle Coffee) on Woodbury Avenue, and Citygate Community Hub on Holdenhurst Road. More information about Bournemouth Foodbank can be found at https://bournemouth.foodbank.org.uk/.

For further information about KTM Design, visit https://www.ktmdesign.co.uk/.