About Our Work
What We Do
At Kitchen Club, families work together to make a delicious, healthy lunch alongside activities to support positive relationships and good child development.
Who We Work With
We support families on low incomes with limited access to healthy food, with additional risk factors like poor mental health, social isolation, and inadequate housing. We prioritise engaging parents who need help building confidence and skills, but who have not yet been reached by other services. A majority of the families who attend Kitchen Club live in temporary accommodation, including a high proportion of asylum seekers and refugees. Three of our weekly projects are for this community, delivered at settings close to local hostels. We deliver 150+ Kitchen Club sessions per year, with around 400 unique beneficiaries.
Our Model
The Kitchen Club model supports key protective factors like good nutrition and attentive parenting, with a focus on psychological safety, accessibility and making positive choices easier. We use fun, interactive activities which are simple to try at home, supported by clear, evidence-based messaging from trusted sources. Our food is nutritionally balanced, easy to cook and low-cost. Consultation, choice and shared decision-making ensure that each Kitchen Club session is an inclusive, community-owned space.
Partnerships
We work closely with local organisations like Hackney Playbus, Round Chapel Families Project, Caris Families, and Happy Baby Community to share resources and co-ordinate support. Kitchen Club is a referral partner for Hackney Baby and Children Bank and Hackney Food bank.
We have strong links with Children’s Centres and Family Hubs, and regularly host external professionals including Wellbeing Coaches, Family Support Workers and Health Visitors. In 2023 we became a placement setting for students on UCL’s Creative Health MASC programme.
Advocacy & Policy Change
We support families to shape the services which affect them through facilitating consultations with the council, and we represent their interests through contributions to the Hackney Temporary Accommodation Action Group, the Hackney Refugee and Migrant Forum, and the Woodberry Wetlands Neighbourhood forum. In these policy spaces we argue for targeted and co-ordinated support and the removal of barriers like the ‘No visitors’ policy. We also represent the voluntary sector within the City and Hackney Social Connections Leads group.
Kitchen Club Works With...
Key Approaches
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Targeted outreach to connect directly with isolated families
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Friendly and informal sessions
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Families can drop-in with no need to book
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A strengths-based approach, building on existing skills
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A relaxed, ‘low-stakes’ learning environment
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Family activities which support positive interactions and build secure relationships
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Trauma-informed principles, emphasising safety, trust, choice and collaboration
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Partnerships with parents to design the menu, suggest ideas for activities, and co-lead sessions
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Access to reliable information, support and guidance
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Proactive signposting and referrals to key services, from food banks to children’s centres
Where We Work
Core Projects
We have four core projects, providing long-term support for communities with high levels of need.
Woodlands Park Children’s Centre, Haringey
Redmond Community Centre, Hackney
St Peter’s Church Crypt, Hackney
Round Chapel Old School Rooms, Hackney
Legacy Projects
Legacy projects are delivered in partnership with Children’s Centres and Family Hubs. Across 4-6 months, we co-deliver sessions, share our resources and train setting staff to deliver the project independently after we move on.
Comet Children’s Centre
Sebright Children’s Centre
Daubeney Children’s Centre 2023-24
What Partner Settings Say About Us
Why Our Work Is Needed
Good nutrition and consistent, responsive parenting are key to healthy child development. But in order to provide effective care, parents need the resources, knowledge and skills to meet the challenge. Access to support, information and advice can make a big difference, but often those who could benefit the most are the least likely to access support.
Early Years Nutrition
Rising food costs, incomplete knowledge, and lack of confidence and skills mean that many children in low-income households do not enjoy a healthy, balanced diet.
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Only 20% of children in the lowest income quintile eat the recommended 5 portions of fruit and veg per day
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Children in the most deprived quintile are 4x as likely to have severe obesity than those in the least deprived fifth
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Poor nutrition has a significant impact on both children’s health and their readiness to learn
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High consumption of sugar often leads to dental decay, the leading cause of hospital admissions for 5-9 yr olds
In addition to the immediate benefits of a good diet, habits from childhood often track into adulthood. Early intervention with parents of pre-school children can therefore influence outcomes much later in life.
The Home Learning Environment
The quality of the Home Learning Environment (HLE) is a key predictor of a child’s early language ability and future success. More than simply access to toys and material resources, the most important learning opportunities include:
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Conversations with adults
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Interactive play
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Shared enjoyment of books
Positive home learning experiences are consistently associated with material deprivation - children from low-income households entering reception often have language skills below age-related expectations. But there is no causal link between low income and poor outcomes for children. Disrupted parenting and a lack of knowledge and skills, rather than poverty itself, are the most important factors.
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Parent mental health can impact on the HLE, increasing the risk of disrupted parenting
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Adults in the lowest 20% income bracket are twice as likely to develop mental health problems than those in the highest 20%
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Additional risk factors include Inadequate housing, relationship breakdown, trauma and stress.
A good home learning environment can effectively moderate the effects of disadvantage. Working with parents to build wellbeing, resilience and skills is therefore crucial to improving long term outcomes for children.