Evaluation report on Food Power programme released

This month a final evaluation report, toolkit, and a film, have been published on the of progress of food poverty alleviation project, Food Power - reflecting on what the programme has learned about tackling food poverty through strengthening resources available to local communities.

Key findings: What has Food Power delivered?

• Since 2017, 85 alliances around the UK have registered with Food Power
• 33 regional learning networks have been supported by peer mentors
• Amongst the alliances surveyed, 88% of alliances report now having a food poverty action plan in place or in progress
• And 76% of alliances report they have been influenced to involve experts in their work dealing with food poverty

View our Food Power infographic highlighting more of the key outcomes and successes delivered by the project.

Researchers at Cardiff University’s Sustainable Places Research Institute and School of Geography and Planning have supported evaluation of the National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF) funded project led by Sustain and Church Action on Poverty which focused on tackling the root causes of food poverty. This project has centred on developing alliances among local organisations from various sectors and giving voice to those experiencing food poverty. As a research partner, the Cardiff University team supported good practice in monitoring, measuring and mapping information across the organisations involved.

The evaluation and programme teams worked together throughout the past four years, using findings to inform activities undertaken by the Food Power project and support local networks by building capacity to evaluate their own work.

Dr. Ana Moragues-Faus from the University of Barcelona and research affiliate at PLACE noted that; “food Power has situated collective action as the key lever to tackle food poverty and its structural causes… So they are creating this very diverse, very place-based movement that can have an impact in communities, in neighbourhoods, in specific places and cities, but also can have an impact on national policies, either at a UK level, or in the different nations.”

The final report presents insights from a survey and interviews with representatives from the 85 alliances involved in the Food Power project across the UK. The report provides a picture of progress and cumulative impact of Food Power’s activity, highlighting how the project has delivered beyond initial expectations in terms of the number of alliances they have been able to support and range of engagement.

Andy Williams, Senior Lecturer in Human Geography at Geography and Planning said: “The work of Food Power has been a game changer, specifically around the Experts by Experience programme. Food Power has worked really closely with 15 experts by experience and forefront their voices in a range of different activities.”

For more information on the Food Power project including the full Final Report, visit their website here.