To coincide with last month’s World Food Day (16 October), the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation has published its 2023 annual report detailing the positive impact its activities have had for more than 1.8 million people across the UK & Ireland.
World Food Day is a global initiative focused on raising awareness of hunger and promoting action to create a better food future for all – a mission shared by Sodexo and the Stop Hunger Foundation.
Understanding food insecurity as a symptom, the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation’s work goes beyond immediate food aid activities. It is focused on changing lives by addressing the root causes of food insecurity with a focus on women’s empowerment. According to research, women are one of the most effective way to tackle food insecurity and guaranteeing healthy and self-sustained lives[1]. The Foundation continues to work with national and local charity partners to unite and mobilise changemakers to deliver much-needed support to those in need.
According to FareShare and the Food Foundation, one in five people in the UK are struggling with food insecurity.[2] Working across the four enablers of Stop Hunger’s mission – grants giving, volunteering, fundraising and partnerships – the Foundation has responded to the unprecedented levels of food insecurity experienced in the UK and Ireland over the last 12 months.
It has increased support given to its charity partners, carefully balancing the benefits of a hyper-local funding approach with the resilience and reach of its national partner network. Relying on charity partners’ expertise, the Foundation adapted its funding strategy to enable its charity partners to redirect funds to meet the most pressing needs and increased existing grants in line with inflation. The Foundation has also increased its number of multiyear grants and core cost funding, recognising the benefit for charities to continue to deliver impact over a longer timeframe without the need to pursue annual funding.
In the 12 months up to 31 August 2023, the Foundation has invested more heavily in food aid and offered its charity partners exceptional grants to meet immediate needs. 70 charities and social enterprises received support through financial grants and volunteering activities.
More than £500,000 has been donated to 26 charities, £20,000 was also raised as an emergency donation following the Turkey/Syria earthquake.
Fundraising and volunteering are key enablers to the Foundation’s work and over the last year Sodexo and its colleagues, clients and suppliers came together and raised a record £584,148. At the same time, significantly increasing the number of hours volunteered to almost 8,000 – more than half of which was skills-based volunteering.
Beyond immediate food aid, the Foundation is focused on empowering communities to tackle the root causes of food insecurity and poverty and has supported a number of projects and organisations focused on improving skills, supporting mental health, mentoring, providing education opportunities and building financial literacy and confidence from an early age.
Gareth John, European Director of Sodexo Legal Affairs and Chair of the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation, said: “The stories we share in this year’s report show how the contributions, whether time or money, from our colleagues, suppliers and clients are changing lives and directly benefitting more than 1.8 million people in this year alone. There is so much more to do and, as a purpose-led organisation, we remain committed to mobilising changemakers to respond and focus; to create a better everyday for everyone to build a better life for all.”
Mark Game, CEO of the Stop Hunger charity partner The Bread and Butter Thing said: “Over 80% of The Bread and Butter Things members are female, and each strand of work we have carried out with the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation has focussed on empowering women. From increasing the number of Mums registering for Healthy Start Vouchers to workshops building confidence and motivation with tailored action plans. Our partnership work shows the shared values we have with Sodexo and the Stop Hunger Foundation and we are immensely grateful to Stop Hunger for their help and support.”
The 2023 Sodexo Stop Hunger report includes more details on its achievements and stories from its activities between 1 Sept 2022 and 31 August 2023, to read the report click here: https://sodexouki.info/45Cgbbw
Sodexo is the founding partner of the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation, a UK registered charity. In the UK & Ireland, the Foundation’s mission is to act sustainably to fight food insecurity and its work complements Sodexo’s Social Impact pledge.
Thanks to the financial support of Sodexo, 100% of the donations made to Stop Hunger go directly to financing activities and sustainable solutions for disadvantaged communities to exit food insecurity.
The Foundation’s work contributes to Sodexo’s global corporate responsibility commitment, Better Tomorrow 2025 which aligns to the Sustainable Development Goals designed by the UN to make the world a fairer and more equal place.
