Leader thanks ‘good eggs’

The Leader of Shropshire Council has thanked residents and businesses in Oswestry for all their help in setting up a new way to bring people together to enjoy good food and company.

The Good Eggs Club is being developed by the council to help people both eat well and make new friends. People have been sharing their thoughts and ideas on what might work best in the town.

Following a range of activities in recent weeks to gain views, which have included setting up a market stall and holding a bring and share event, the Good Eggs Club is now taking shape.

The club will offer opportunities to:

• Share food
• Share knowledge about food
• Reduce food waste
• Redistribute food
• Produce food
• Develop businesses

Sessions and activities which could be run through the club are being explored further. These are:

• Food buddy – people getting together in homes and small community venues to learn from each other and share food in an informal way.
• Clever cooking – advice and guidance to help people get the most out of their cash and cupboard, including budgeting, cooking guidance, diet advice, recipes and healthy eating.
• Food 4 Thought – formal courses with qualifications and master classes from professionals.
• What’s in your cupboard – learning how to make a feast out of the things in the back of the fridge or cupboard.
• Ossy’s Kitchen – groups of people coming together to cook food in a community setting; a regular cooking club.
• Dish – taking unwanted food from local businesses, turning it into a great meal and distributing food.
• Grow Yours @ Mine – putting people who want to grow food is touch with those with garden space and green fingers. 

A showcase event is being organised to provide taster sessions of all seven of these activities and find out which might be most popular.  Details will be publicised soon. Shropshire Council’s business design team is keen for any local community groups or businesses who think they might like to get involved, either by attending a session or running a session, to get in touch.

Keith Barrow, Leader of Shropshire Council and local Shropshire councillor for Oswestry South, said:

“Good Eggs is really starting to take shape and we’ve only been able to do this with the input of the community.

“We want to enable communities to find solutions that work for them and their area – and the people of Oswestry are key to making the Good Eggs Club a success.

“People have shared lots of great ideas and together we’ve come up with a range of opportunities for people to share skills, time, support, company, ingredients, and to eat well together.

“I’d like to say a big thank you to everyone who has given their time to offer their insights and help us find out more.

“All these contributions will go towards ensuring that the Good Eggs Club can help people to benefit from nutritious, well-prepared meals and find friendly, like-minded people to share food experiences with.

“Watch out for details of the showcase event where you can find out more and get involved.  We would love to also work more existing community groups and local businesses.  The Good Eggs Club is about complementing and promoting some of the great things we know are already going on in the area, as well as encouraging people to become a ‘good egg’ and try new things.”

 
Good Eggs will be developed and run in south Oswestry, with a view to branching out across Oswestry after exploring what works best for people in the area.

To join the Good Eggs Club or just find out more please contact Jo Kilcoyne on 01743 252016 or email joanne.kilcoyne@shropshire.gov.uk.