JUNE 2015
After trading regularly at markets in the North West, we reached our first social impact target – 1,000 foodbank donations!
DECEMBER 2015
Shortly after our 1st birthday we were asked to share our story at TEDx Sheffield.
JULY 2016
By the summer of 2016 the donated food from our market events had contributed to over 10,000 meals in the North West!
APRIL 2017
As well as donating food to foodbanks, we had started to teach people how to cook healthy nutritious meals, improve their budgeting skills and provide support with nutrition. By Easter 2017 we had taught our first 50 participants!
SEPTEMBER 2017
This was when we piloted our first ‘buy one, give one’ cookery course in Altrincham. We’ve since expanded the concept to Knutsford, Sandbach, Wilmslow, Manchester and Salford!
JANUARY 2018
A team of interns from Manchester Metropolitan University joined the Bounceback Food team for 2 months in our co-working office in Manchester – they were superb! We now run an annual social enterprise internship programme every summer.
JUNE 2018
Using specially adapted kitchen equipment we delivered our first cookery courses specifically designed for stroke survivors.
AUGUST 2018
Our ‘Back the book’ crowdfunder launched! During the 2 week campaign we successfully raised the £2,500 required to complete this book with a selection of rewards including supper clubs, honorary memberships and our recently launched corporate ‘cook off’ challenge.
MARCH 2019
With our community cookery school in full swing, we reached another social impact milestone – over 1,000 people have now learned to cook with us!
MAY 2019
We launched our Cooking and Nutrition portal which is giving individuals and organisations access to our range of healthy recipes, meal planning support, budgeting advice and nutritional guidance.
NOVEMBER 2019
We published our first recipe book, Secret dishes from around the world, after 15 months of designing, illustrating and recipe testing! You can order a hardback copy here in our online store 🙂
JANUARY 2020
We put out an open call for artists based in Greater Manchester, Cheshire & North Wales, the 3 regions where our team delivers cookery workshops and outreach work.
FEBRUARY 2020
Our selection panel chose the 20 artists who feature in Secret Dishes From Around the World 2! They have a wide range of styles and are all at different stages in their careers. We then launched our second ‘Back the Book’ crowdfunding campaign to raise the funds required to commission all of the artists involved and support the development of our community cookery school.
MARCH 2020
Our response to the COVID-19 pandemic included donating all of our stock to foodbanks, adapting our catering service to deliver meals door to door and pledging 5 million free licenses, which helped us to support people across the UK via our charity partners.
APRIL 2020
We completed the recipes, photography and additional graphic design work in Secret Dishes From Around the World 2. At the same time, while the country remained in lockdown, the artists submitted their original designs and profiles that feature in the book!
JULY 2020
Our Social Enterprise Internship programme ran remotely for the first time, which enabled us to work with a group of talented young people from across the country!
AUGUST 2020
We launched an accompanying podcast to Secret Dishes From Around the World 2 called Share Your Secrets! Episodes included interviews with the artists, Bounceback Food CIC team and people from the featured countries. Check them out here.
SEPTEMBER 2020
We started to deliver online cookery workshops and fundraising events, which allowed people across the UK to book on and join our community cookery school.
NOVEMBER 2020
We published Secret Dishes From Around the World 2 – get your first edition copy here in our online store!
FEBRUARY 2021
Community Meal Drives, cookalongs and food sector employment support programmes form part of our response to the third national lockdown.
MARCH 2021
Our third ‘Back the Book’ crowdfunding campaign raises the funds required to commission 20 arts charities and social enterprises in the 20 UK cities where we’re building delivery teams to produce original artwork for Secret Dishes From Around the World 3.
JULY 2021
Our fourth annual Social Enterprise Internship programme welcomes 30 young people from 6 different countries. They work on a variety of marketing, publishing and events projects and help prepare for the launch of our London Community Cookery School team later in the year.
AUGUST 2021
Our holiday hunger outreach work supports young people and their families who receive free school meals during term time. By distributing meals, teaching people how to cook and providing beneficiaries with free access to our Cooking & Nutrition portal our Community Cookery School continues to lead the fight against food poverty on multiple fronts.
OCTOBER 2021
Our third fundraiser cookbook, Secret Dishes From Around the World 3, was published at the start of October 2021. To celebrate the publication, we embarked on a nationwide book tour to promote the book. The tour also allowed us to record Season 2 of our Secret Dishes From Around the World podcast, which features interviews with artists and organisers who collaborated with us on the book.
NOVEMBER 2021
We launched our Reverse Advent Calendar Campaign, encouraging people around the country to donate items to their local food bank. We contacted food banks around the UK to create a Christmas information hub to call out for volunteers and specific food items.
FEBRUARY 2022
Our ‘Help us Grow’ crowdfunding campaign raised the funds required to develop our range of fundraising merchandise and equip Bounceback teams in locations across the UK. You can read more about the success of the campaign here.
APRIL 2022
Volunteer training began as people across the country offered to support the development of our Community Cookery School. Interested in joining us?Apply to be part of the next cohort here.
MAY 2022
We developed our work to deal appropriately with the cost of living crisis, including delivering community cookery workshops, cookalongs and learning programmes with a focus on batch cooking and using ‘food waste’ to create quick, nutritious meals.
JULY 2022
Our fifth annual Social Enterprise Internship programme welcomed 6 people from across the UK who share our determination to end food poverty. They worked on a variety of tasks including our summer 2022 Donation Drive campaign, research for our next fundraising cookbook and our 2023 events schedule. Keep an eye on our internships page for updates on the 2023 programme.
SEPTEMBER 2022
The development of Bounceback branded chopping boards, tote bags and our first recipe calendar came to a close, with each now available to order via our online store. Make an impact with the power of your purchases this Christmas with a gift that gives twice!
NOVEMBER 2022
Our Reverse Advent Calendar Campaign encouraged people around the country to donate items to their local food bank. We collaborated with over 50 independent food banks and TrusselL Trust operated sites around the UK to identify specific food items required, share volunteering opportunities and highlight fundraising priorities on a local level.
DECEMBER 2022
The third series of our Podcast launches! Episodes include interviews and insights from our teams, VCSE partners and beneficiaries as we work together to tackle the cost of living crisis over winter.
APRIL 2023
Meal drives in Manchester, Bradford, Birmingham, Newcastle, Sunderland, London & the South East enabled us to batch cook and distribute hot meals to vulnerable people most impacted by the cost of living crisis. Pledges on our crowdfunding page from members of the public and our corporate partners funded this vital outreach work that generated 20,000+ emergency meals over the winter period.
JULY 2023
The launch of our first Bounceback Food Community Kitchen! Find us at Alty Market in Altrincham, on Central Way opposite Everyman Cinema – where we are serving curries, soups and salads on a buy one give one basis. Each meal will fund another to foodbanks and sheltered accommodation sites across Greater Manchester. We have a lot of exciting events coming up at the Community Kitchen – so be sure to check them out!
JANUARY 2024
We complete the Let’s Cook section of our website, which now includes over 300 recipes alongside nutrition tips, budgeting advice, and meal planning tools. Access up to 7 recipes for free, or find out more about our membership options.
We’re continuing to develop our Community Cookery School teams to help scale up our fight against food poverty across the UK. Find out how we’re getting on via social media and get the latest news on our social enterprise blog!
Help our Community Cookery School team provide 5,000 additional meals and cookery classes in warm hubs this winter!
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