This year Newman Futures supported Newman Women’s Shelter and Kanyirninpa Jukurrpa in delivering the East Newman Food Project which saw 2,514 meals provided to local residents.
Over a number of years, Newman stakeholders have been advocating for a service to respond to food insecurity experienced by people living in Newman. The project partners agreed to implement a short-term, action research project to provide warm, nutritious meals on a regular basis to the local community.
The need for food relief was underscored by the impact food insecurity can have on physical, mental and social health, particularly in young people. It’s also recognised that the availability, price and distance to food outlets in regional and remote areas can make it harder to access food.
“It was good because sometimes we can’t get these meals.”
“– community member
As a result of this need, we hosted 40 sessions between June and September this year, creating a welcoming and friendly space at Miners Promise Park where people could get a hot bowl of soup, some bread and fruit and have a chat with the Project Team, fostering a sense of community.
“It’s good for families to spend time together and have a meal with kids games.”
– community member
The team also delivered 1720 meals to residents homes, which was welcomed by the local community as a valuable part of the service. We’d like to thank Compass Group ESS, whose chefs at Warrawandu supplied delicious, nutritious hot food for the project and the team at Foodbuy who also supported this important initiative.
