Cooking up Connections
"I just wanted to say how much we enjoyed the session on Saturday. Hayley was so lovely and knowledgeable and really welcomed us and made the time fly so quickly! We enjoyed getting stuck in with looking after the veg patches, discovering wildlife and planting the Brussels sprouts!"
Parent on the Cooking up Connections Project.
BYB@Blackrod working alongside Blackrod Primary School received funding from the National Lottery Community Fund to deliver community growing and cooking workshops. The sessions were run in partnership with the Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside.
Families from across the generations took part in sessions as children learnt about food growing, how to plant, look after and harvest a variety of herbs, fruits, and vegetables. They learnt where their food comes from, and how to eat a healthy, balanced diet on a budget. Families not only grew and harvested vegetables and fruits on site at Blackrod Primary School but took plants away to grow a home.
Families foraged from established fruit trees and bushes and cooked crumbles and made tea over a campfire using the harvested produce to create tasty dishes. They learnt how these recipes can be adapted to be cooked at home using conventional methods for example, learning how to make apple pie. All families enjoyed the sessions and children learnt lots. The project helped to build a strong community giving children support and helping them to build resilience.
We hope that we can continue to build on this really successful project in this future.