ShefFood Meeting Minutes – 20th October 2021

Date: 20th October 2021

Invitees: visit link

Attendees: Leon Ballin, Bev Booker, Geoff Cox, Naomi from Foodhall Project, Fran Halsall, Josephine Hercberg, Natalie Hunt, Rene Meijer, Lorna Middleton, Ruth Passey, Sue Pearson, Pallavi Singh, Claire J Wall, Jessica Wilson, Martin Yarnit and Noreen West.

Apologies: Lisa Aldwinckle, Abby Bruce, Nancy Fielder, Robert Hardie, Lucie Nield, Alison Teal, Jenny Tibbles, Mark Woodward, Nick (SOGS) and Moss Valley Market Garden.

The Zoom recording of this meeting can be viewed here.  

  1. Welcome & Housekeeping

Leon chairing: acknowledgement that this meeting will be long and packed full of information but that other meetings in future will be less onerous as we are on the cusp of syphoning off some roles to the working groups (see 5.2 below).

16 Zoom participants – 

  1. News & Updates
    1. Sustainable Food Activity
      1. Sheffield City Council Right To Food Motion – At the latest Sheffield Council meeting on 8th September a highly significant ‘Right To Food’ motion, with amendments, was passed. Meeting | ‘Right to Food’ motion | Teal & Turpin amendment (page 4) | Live stream
      2. Working with our Universities – Lucie Nield at Sheffield Hallam University and Megan Lewis at The University of Sheffield will sit on the ShefFood steering group and help coordinate effective partnership working between ShefFood, our partners and the Universities. A single working document will be created to map teaching, research and other corporate activities at each institution against the SFP 6 Key Issues framework and support the Silver Award campaign. Representatives from both institutions will be invited to sit on the ShefFood Education, Training and Skills working group.
      3. A new ‘Healthier and Resilient Food Systems Network’ has been created by Yorkshire & Humberside Public Health England, to share progress on food insecurity and wider food systems work and building a repository of case studies and resources, including webinars and action cards.
      4. Schools Climate Education South Yorkshire has invited ShefFood and our partners to participate in the South Yorkshire Schools’ Climate Conference 1-3 March 2022
      5. The Little Sheffield Feast took place on 26th September 2021 at Regather and involved a huge range of ShefFood partners and the local community. Facebook post. The event was supported by National Lottery funding from the South Yorkshire Climate Alliance Can Do project.
      6. The new Sheffield Harvest Fayre event took place on 18-19th September 2021 in the City Centre. Heeley City Farm had a stall. Invite Sue, HCF and Rene & Jo, FW to feedback.
    2. Short updates from attending partners:

Rene, Food Works:  Earth Shot Milan Project, did not win a prize but they are front page of Sheffield Star today.  Headline: 500 tonnes saved from landfill! Nice opportunity to invite more policy driven activity.  

Rene: all FW packaging will be fully biodegradable and made from sustainable materials. Made from waste food, the inedible parts.  

Sue P, HCF: offered funding from SCC Adult Ed for 2021 – 2022 season for horticultural skills training.  Probable spring start.

Jess W, SCC: have committed to refreshing the Food Strategy.  Will be Jess’ ‘job card’ and looks forward to ShefFood Partnershipcollaboration.  

Fran H: Food Works farm: the target for the first season of harvesting was originally 500kg, based on the fact that we could not be certain of how much volunteer support would be available.  Delighted to report that we have now yielded 800kg and it is a testament to the hard work from many motivated volunteers. Food Resilience Project: between the ‘Grow A Row’ and ‘Repurpose Your Surplus’ campaigns at least 2.5 tonnes fruit and veg has been redirected into Food Works.  This is from both surplus from Regather and Sheffield Organic Growers, plus six Sheffield allotments have come on board.  The plan is to repeat next year, providing funding is in place, and start promo in Feb to coincide with the start of the growing season.

  1. Extend invite to partners not present to send short written update for inclusion in meeting minutes.
  1. Partnership Coordination
    1. Coordination (10 mins)
      1. 4 main functions of ShefFood: 1) vehicle and identity for food partnership activity in Sheffield; 2) connecting, coordinating and communicating this activity; 3) supporting design, development and delivery of new food strategy / food growing strategy; and 4) leading a Sheffield SFP Silver Award submission.
      2. Current partnership coordination team – Gareth – partnership coordinator, Fran – urban agriculture coordinator, Lorna – comms coordinator.
      3. Start of a new chapter for ShefFood, enabled by the successful Bronze Award submission, and a successful application to the SFP Bronze to Silver £20k grant programme, and successfully negotiating an offer of £20k match funding from Sheffield City Council Public Health.
      4. Pleased to confirm written agreements, offering grants from Sustainable Food Places and Sheffield City Council, to Regather Limited, on behalf of ShefFood have been exchanged.
      5. ShefFood would like to acknowledge the integral role of Together for Sheffield Together for Food Provision, the SCC Food Poverty Working Group and the Right To Food campaign in enabling the critically important Right To Food motion by SCC, and the ongoing support and encouragement we have received from Cllr Julie Grocutt and Cllr Alison Teal.
      6. Thank you to everyone who has played a role in getting us to where we are today.
      7. The ShefFood paper Pathways from Bronze to Silver outlines next steps for developing the partnership. Main focus is to build the coordination capacity of ShefFood through new recruitment. Proposal is for the coordination team to undertake new recruitment, with support and involvement from Rachel Boyce, Regather; Leon Ballin, SFP and Jess Wilson, SCC.
      8. Invitation to meeting to discuss and agree on recruitment & capacity building proposal.
      9. Minutes of discussion:

Naomi, FoodHall: keen to facilitate links between Food Poverty groups with Food Growing and Sustainability groups.  Pointing out the SCC ‘Right to Food’ is good progress in this direction.

Rene: looking at the partnership budget, recruiting staff is a big financial commitment.  He asks for an update on ShefFood’s current budget situation.  Leon: budget should be on quarterly meeting standing agenda item.  Request made to circulate budget update.

  1. Communications (15 mins)
    1. Welcome to Lorna Middleton, new ShefFood Comms Coordinator

Engaged by Gareth Robertsto make ShefFood the hub for all things food.  Redeveloping the website – intended to be the hub for all, not just partners but also citizens.  A space for sharing events and other big news items.  Increased marketing push through social media and the newsletter.  Please let Lorna Middletonknow about upcoming events, up to a year ahead.  

Gareth: acknowledging the timeframe has not been as fast as would be liked, partly due to personal reasons and also the lack of partnership capacity.  Comms and website plan is ready to go but capacity is still an issue.

Ruth P: Food Mapping exercise from VAS, where is this up to?  Shakila Sharriff’s project but she has not been able to attend today’s meeting.

Rene: has offered to look into the mapping work (as FW has a role in food poverty group).

  1. Invite Lorna to briefly introduce herself
  2. Acknowledge delays caused by various issues (summer holidays, bereavement, confirming SFP and SCC funding, limited capacity of partnership coordination team)
  3. Outline activity to date – comms proposal, website proposal, initial questions & timeline, request for comms information
  4. Highlight new Sheffield Star Food & Drink pages, including coverage for Bronze Award, Food Works, Fringe Farming, Food Works and conversation with Nancy Fielder, Sheffield Star Editor – Geoff Cox, SYCA

Geoff Cox: SYCA on Sustainable Food, COP26 is a great opportunity.  Geoff approached broadcast media to build on COP coverage, including post COP reports from those who attended the conference.  Nancy Fielder wants: vegan recipe of the week with story behind it… Nancy wants commitment to fill pages with copy.  They also like awards ceremonies etc; keen on doing a kids supplement.

Lorna: Gareth already providing some content.  Lorna will take the co-ord role, including liaising with SYCA, making sure content gets written and sent in time for publication.

  1. Meetings (5 mins)
    1. Report on steering group meetings – mailing list, quarterly meeting schedule, agenda
    2. Report on Sustainable Food Places meetings – coordinator meet-up, Bronze Award feedback
  1. Break
  1. Hosting (10 mins)
    1. Regather Limited is the host organisation of ShefFood. It functions as the accountable body for the partnership, managing funding and finances, functions as employer for the partnership coordination team, and takes operational responsibility for the delivery of ShefFood related events and project activities. The current arrangements are outlined in the ShefFood Terms of Reference.
    2. This hosting arrangement is officially recognised and supported by Sustainable Food Places, Sheffield City Council, The University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University. This arrangement also has the full support of Regather Limited.
    3. This hosting arrangement represents a major undertaking for Regather Limited, and it is widely acknowledged ShefFood benefits significantly from significant in kind support and resources provided by Regather.
    4. Proposal is for all partners to acknowledge and support the current hosting arrangements, and to agree they are maintained for the minimum period of 2022 & 2023 to offer stability and certainty to all parties involved in the ongoing development of the ShefFood partnership.
    5. Invitation to meeting to discuss and agree the partnership hosting proposal.
    6. Minutes of discussion:

Rene: supports the timeline but wants to look at budget and planning transparency.  Recognizes the capacity issues has not helped with clarity in arrangements but insistent that this is the case going forward.
Gareth: budget update coming (Regather accounts ended in September) this will produce a coherent budget document.  

Rene: wants to ensure clarity of direction planning, not just accountability once money already spent.

Naomi:  asks about line manager for the new co-ord position.  

Leon: SFP funding expects that there will formal line management from the hosting organisation.  The planning has to be taken care of by ShefFood Partnership

  1. Working Groups (20 mins)
    1. Acknowledge proposal and consensus agreement to form working groups.  
    2. Outline considerations for ‘key issue’ working groups
  • proposal to adopt / adapt SFP 6 Key Issues: to form basis of best practice
  • mutual recognition of existing activity: (lots of good work happening within and without the partnership, it is a case of allowing existing activity to interface with the partnership). 
  • establish new key issue working groups: groups that align directly or in part with the SFP 6 key issues.  
  • establish new cross cutting issue working groups: set up key issues / partners matrix working doc – proposal: establishing an education skills and training group.  
  • food citizenship? skills & training?
  1. Mutual recognition – Together For Sheffield Together for Food Provision (3A – food poverty)
  2. Mutual recognition – SCC Public Health, Eat Smart Sheffield, People Keeping Well + partners (3B – healthy eating)
  3. Proposal to establish a Partnership Coordination working group (1A, 2A), organise ‘Silver Accelerator’ event in early 2022 and when appropriate establish a Silver Award working group.
  4. Proposal to establish a Food Strategy working group (1B)
  5. Proposal to establish a Education, Skills & Training working group (cross cutting) (Alliance between – Learn Sheffield, UoS, SHU, Sheffield College, HCF and others) Does not align with SFP key issues but touches on many.   Leon: SFP 6 points not meant to be restrictive, ‘cross-cutting’ is acceptable. 
  6. Opportunity to establish a Food Waste Reduction (6B) working group – see Can Do item below 3.6.4
  7. Invitation to meeting to discuss working groups
  8. Minutes of discussion:

Gareth: we need to design in the process to streamline the silver award process.  

Jess W: is there value to a standalone ‘Food Strategy’ group?  Will this not be informed by skills and food poverty working groups?  

Leon: Lancaster and Cambridge are good role models for organisation of working group structure. Leon can arrange for information sharing.

Rene: fluidity is good but how do the working groups connect with each other and the partnership governance.

Gareth: this wider zoom meeting grouping is the first step to consultation on the working groups.  Wider ownership by the partnership, Gareth is stepping back from deciding what these groups should look like.  A steering group matrix will be created to clarify how these groups are working cooperatively towards sliver.

Martin Y: six month trial period to work out how the steering grouping works?  Proposes that steering group co-ord and partnership co-ord should be the same.   IS THIS RIGHT???

Naomi: needs to see a visual of how this might work.  Smaller group to make a proposal that can then be taken to wider group?  She won’t be offended!  

Jess: be pragmatic.  Follow the existing alliances / groupings that can be brought into play to constitute the working groups.  

Gareth: traffic light visual matrix will be created.

Leon: makes the point that a ‘procurement group’ is not likely to evolve without an intentional push. 

  1. Grants, Projects & Campaigns
    1. Working with Sheffield Children’s Hospital – Green Agenda & Food Sustainability – Noreen West
      1. Noreen West – coming at this from her personal interest.  Three areas of mutual benefit: 
  1. how can we look after children in hospital, how can they eat well? Some arrangement for Food Works to supply good value hot meals out of hours.  From the trust perspective they are addressing food inequality (support from trust).
  2. Can the Trust play a role as a food distribution hub? Centenary House, Beckton site.
  3. NHS greenspaces – the main sites have limited scope but keen to use spaces to encourage kids to grow and to improve the quality of greenspace.  Social prescribing role – childhood obesity.  Beckton (childhood mental health) – plenty of greenspace available to create a staff and patient garden.  Flat roofs available.  No mechanism to move this forward as yet.  Exec sponsorship required but there is a small fund for supporting healthy eating / growing.

Jess: talking with Parks & Countryside about using land for growing.  SCC have no in house expertise and need ShefFood support to enact any plans.  

Noreen: money for green social prescribing is available through the SCC budget.

  1. Good Food Movement SFP grant opportunity – public comms focused – deadline 18th Nov
  2. Food for the Planet or Veg Cities SFP grant opportunity – Every Mouthful Counts plus a range of food system / climate issues – deadline 18th Nov.
  3. Food System Resilience

Report from lead partner Food Works. #Grow A Row / #Repurpose Your Surplus. End of project report to go to SFP expected mid/late November.  

Rene: exciting to make locally grown sustainable food available to all Sheffield residents, rather than those that already benefit from access to organic food.  A wonderful vehicle for engaging many Sheffield residents in the food system.  The idea has been well received and supported by allotmenteers.

  1. Fringe Farming

The Farming Sheffield’s Fringe report produced in collaboration with Sustain and Shared Assets by Fran Halsall & Gareth Roberts was published 4th Oct and it received coverage in the Sheffield Star / Telegraph the following week. The report includes recommendations for the City Council and commitments from ShefFood that will support collaborative working to progress the aim to bring more of Sheffield’s peri urban fringe into cultivation.  You can request to receive the report on this page.  Fran has written a blog to accompany the report publication, taking training for new entrants into farming as the theme.

  1. Urban Agriculture Consortium

Since the last ShefFood meeting Sheffield and other Northern Pathfinder cities went on a field trip to the Kindling Trust FarmStart in Stockport.  This research tour was a helpful addition to the programme of online workshops in informing the next stage of UAC work: the creation of a FarmStart feasibility study for Sheffield. This process is expected to begin in November and be finished by the end of 2021.

  1. Sheffield Climate Alliance – Can Do South Yorkshire
    1. Report on Can Do X ShefFood ‘Good Food Conversations’ event, Live Works, Aug’21
    2. Report on Can Do X Food Works collaboration, Sharrow Hub, Aug’21
    3. Report on Can Do Live Project collaboration, ongoing, Oct’21
    4. Discussion on Can Do CAF bid. Vanessa Senger, SCA has invited expressions of interest in a food waste project as part of Can Do CAF bid, est. value £15k per year, focused on SFP Key Issue 6b – ‘Reduce, redirect and recycle food, packaging and related waste.’ – includes food waste hierarchy, food waste collection, composting, reduction and redistribution campaigns. Any partner organisations interested? Food Works? Heeley City Farm?

AOB: 

Leon: Marcus Rashford Campaign – healthy start, healthy holidays.  There’s only two wards in the whole of the UK have not signed up, one of which is Brightside.  Anyone in the partnership able to exert influence?

Leon: SFP given space at COP26 by Nourish Scotland – requests support from the food partnership, whether you are going in person or whether you are attending virtually.

Gareth: Laura Chippendale is the SCC COP26 planning person (or possibly Liam Bardell)

Naomi: does anyone have a free space for a meeting of up to 10 people for November 9th?  And does anyone have grant funding for enabling regular hybrid meetings, for better microphones etc.?

Zoom Chat

From Sue Pearson – H… to Everyone:12:07 AM

sorry I’m late ! IT problems

From Fran Halsall to Everyone:12:08 AM

You’ve not missed much yet Sue!

From Rene Meijer to Everyone:12:11 AM

Food Works will be doing a workshop for that, happy to work with anyone on that if that’s of interest

(the schools conference thing)

From Madame Zucchini… to Everyone:12:11 AM

That’s amazing Rene :)) – the star piece particularly.

From Rene Meijer to Everyone:12:11 AM

🙂

From Fran Halsall to Everyone:12:12 AM

Hi Rene!

From Pallavi Singh to Everyone:12:12 AM

I am interested Rene in working with foodworks on school climate event

and amazing work by Foodworks always and good to know that it is being recognised

From Madame Zucchini… to Everyone:12:13 AM

I showcased my new climate change show Beanworld at the climate conference for schools. Thinking about what to contribute next year now 🙂

From Sue Pearson – H… to Everyone:12:21 AM

I hope people can open this photo from my gmail:

From Madame Zucchini… to Everyone:12:45 AM

There’s been some great pieces in the food and drink supplement. Including about Mme Zucchini back in August – marvelous coverage of what I do :))

From Geoffrey cox to Everyone:12:49 AM

I’ll bow out now. Thanks for the invitation. Will keep in touch via Lorna. Geoff

From Jessica Wilson to Everyone:12:59 AM

eating lunch so will keep camera off for time being!

From Sue Pearson – H… to Everyone:1:00 PM

Am eating my lunch ! hope that’s OK – am starving… great news about the Right to Food motion 🙂

From Fran Halsall to Everyone:1:00 PM

It is lunchtime after all 😀

From Leon Ballin to Everyone:1:13 PM

https://www.sustainablefoodplaces.org/resources/

From Me to Everyone:1:21 PM

https://www.sustainablefoodplaces.org/resources/partner_uploads/sheffield_1627568472.pdf

From Leon Ballin to Everyone:1:21 PM

https://www.sustainablefoodplaces.org/awards/

From Rene Meijer to Everyone:1:24 PM

Lancaster had a really interesting model

From Sue Pearson – H… to Everyone:1:40 PM

Becton (mentioned by Noreen) is one of the referral routes for young people with mental health issues coming to Heeley City farm

From Rene Meijer to Everyone:1:43 PM

Really exciting Noreen. It fits in really well with what we’re hoping to do in Sheffield so definetly a good reason to talk some more in detail and see what we can do

From Madame Zucchini… to Everyone:1:44 PM

Can you share your email Noreen?

From Sue Pearson – H… to Everyone:1:46 PM

Re Working Groups – hosting and convening – we’d be very happy to step up and lead on a Working Group and can bring capacity to bring partners together as part of the Governance Framework. Which one of the SFP Key Issues would sit best ? (I feel HCF is already involved in delivering outcomes in all of them…)

From Noreen West to Everyone:1:47 PM

Noreen.west@nhs.net

Thanks for the warm reception and inviting me along, very exciting times

From Sue Pearson – H… to Everyone:1:53 PM

Just uploaded our little map showing all the local food growing community gardens – 92 volunteers each week 🙂

Composting …..

From Rene Meijer to Everyone:1:53 PM

Definetly will have a look, Sue want to do that together?

From Sue Pearson – H… to Everyone:1:54 PM

yes sure Rene – we’ve been approached to run another home food waste composting project in Gleadless Valley

From Leon Ballin to Everyone:1:56 PM

https://www.foodfortheplanet.org.uk/

From Sue Pearson – H… to Everyone:1:56 PM

Thanks everyone – great meeting – I might ‘disappear’ shortly as I’m going virtually to the VAS AGM 2-4 p.m. (back to back Zooms for me today…) e-mail for follow-up is sue@heeleyfarm.org.uk

From Fran Halsall to Everyone:1:56 PM

Thanks Sue.

From Me to Everyone:1:56 PM

Thanks Sue 🙂

From Madame Zucchini… to Everyone:1:57 PM

I’m interested in having a chat about Veg cities application and how I could help

From Noreen West to Everyone:1:58 PM

Afraid I need to go to another meeting at 2.00, great to meet you all albeit virtually

From Me to Everyone:1:59 PM

We will put the relevant information together in the meeting minutes. There is a fair about to consider with the SFP grants which are available, particularly given current coordination capacity.

Thanks Noreen

From Rene Meijer to Everyone:1:59 PM

is that the eKelham island one?

I’m talking to Laure in SCC about that later I think

From Jessica Wilson to Everyone:2:00 PM

sorry I need to leave for another meeting now – thanks all

From Me to Everyone:2:00 PM

thanks Jess