New charity kitchen set to support low income families through high cost of living period

A new kitchen to help children learn to cook low cost recipes is now open in Newcastle after a three year wait.

Kids Kabin, which has bases in Newcastle and Middlesbrough, started planning a new kitchen and café project in 2019 to benefit its members, who are all between the ages of seven and 13.

The Covid pandemic hit the site hard with the project in Walker needing to be delayed with instillation also being impacted by the costs associated with rising inflation. After an initial expected 16 week instillation period, the project is finally completed.

Chief Executive Will Benson has seen the organisation grow from its Walker roots in a disused shop in 1994 to a thriving, award-winning charity with weekly satellite activities in Byker, Daisy Hill, Pottery Bank and Cowgate in Newcastle, alongside regular street workshops and event pop-ups across the region, as well as its activities on Teesside.

He explained: “We faced some challenges during the building project, work having started in September 2020 after the first lockdown. However, subsequent lockdowns and the impact of Covid on the health of our chosen contractor and his team severely affected this timescale.

“This was further compounded with significant inflation in the cost of building materials. But to cut a long story very short, we adapted, redesigned and renegotiated, and having been without a kitchen for nearly three years, our young people and volunteers were ready to cook the moment the builders left!”

The site will be used five days a week to support children in low income areas of the city with after-school groups, school holiday provision, and visiting classes from local primary schools all using the site which has five independent cooking areas, fully equipped with utensils, pots and pans, and each with its own hob and oven.

The new site can be found on Church Walk in Walker where after-school workshops are run on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Anyone wanting to use the facilities can pick up a membership form and kids can join at no cost.