Please note this article was published in March 2024 and has not been updated. For current operation times and services, please see the events calendar or the Cherwell Larder page.

Changes are coming to our Cherwell Larder and Climatarian Kitchen services from 1 April 2024. These changes are coming primarily due to extreme rent increases from Kidlington Parish Council and our desire to only operate when essential rather than withholding the community hall from our community. As a result Cherwell Larder will leave Exeter Hall for Friday and Saturday services.

Cherwell Larder and Climatarian Kitchen will operate out of Exeter Hall on Thursdays only, and for the immediate future the Larder and a reduced Climatarian Kitchen service will operate on Fridays and Saturdays from our WISH shop at 4 the Parade, Kidlington, OX5 1EE on Fridays and Saturdays. 

We are saddened by the circumstances that have necessitated this change, and are concerned about how it will affect our incredible community. We are doing all in our power to make this transition a smooth one and to support those most in need of our services.

Last year 1,495 UNIQUE postcodes visited us with an average of 1 visit every 2 months. In Kidlington alone we had over 10,000 visits from 895 unique verified postcodes.

In 2023 we saved 196+ tonnes of food and 52+ tonnes of nonfood from landfill through the Cherwell Larder Marketplace. That’s over 2.4 MILLION car miles in food alone. 

Rest assured we will continue our vital work in waste reduction, community building, and supporting the vulnerable.

Please read on to learn more about these changes and our plans going forward.

Adjusted Locations and Services

Thursdays:

11 – 2, Exeter Hall. We will remain at Exeter Hall in Kidlington as we are currently, and will serve food from the cafe for our community. Our existing partners will continue to share this space with us as they have. 

Fridays:

11 – 2, WISH. Our operations will move to WISH (4 the Parade, Kidlington, OX5 1EE) with a small meal and tea and activity offering.

Saturdays:

11 – 2, WISH. Our Saturday operations will move to WISH (4 the Parade, Kidlington, OX5 1EE) with a small meal and tea and activity offering. 

School Holidays:

The following Thursdays and Fridays during School Holidays we will be at Exeter Hall:

Easter Holiday	– April 4 & 5 – April 11 & 12
Spring Half Term	– May 30 & 31
Summer Holiday	– July 25 & 26 – August 1 & 2 – August 8 & 9 – August 15 & 16 – August 22 & 23 – August 29 & 30
Winter 2025	– Feb 19 & 20

Why the Change?

Kidlington Parish Council informed us in Autumn we needed to apply for grants to maintain discounted use of Exeter Hall for our services in anticipation of rate increases. We knew for some time our presence on Saturdays was hurting their revenue, so our first response was to reduce services to Thursdays and Fridays. 

We were then informed that the cost of the Thursday/Friday rental would be £1000 weekly, and though we could apply for discounts we were unlikely to receive more than a 50% discount for those terms. Even with that unlikely discount, our overall rent would increase substantially while our usage would decrease to below ⅔ of the current usage. 

In other words, the total costs for our reduced usage per month would be £52000, potentially discounted to as low as £26000, which is still more than we currently pay for our three days instead of two. 

So, we further reduced our request to Thursdays every week. We also requested Fridays during half term since these days have become so important to the community. We at the same time requested two Saturdays to host large events for the community, as well as one Monday for our Big Christmas Lunch. 

The total amount of this request was £19850, which is in line with what Kidlington Parish Council reported are their current discounts provided to us. We felt this would allow the council to signal 100% support for our most essential services for the vulnerable which are held on those days without costing them any more a year, and would also free up the most popular days/times for even more revenue generation. This would also then return to us facilities fees to use booking new locations. 

Decision and Logistics

Kidlington Parish Council voted to support us with 60% of those costs. We are very grateful for this support. But in truth we had been given the impression the grand total of support was going to be worth £7,000 more than given. Still, we will proceed with our plan which is all Thursdays, additional Fridays during school holidays, and a few odd days for community celebration. 

We must vacate the office we have on site by 1st April. Climatarian Kitchen will move off site and will no longer be the in-house catering for Exeter Hall. Though Professor David Robey publicly announced all catering would be provided by us in 2021, the council has refused to provide a contract and protect our status as the catering unit or our access to the space. In turn, that has caused delays in our business plan in terms of revenue generation and our conversion to a charity. 

How You Can Help

Thankfully, we have support from incredible partners like Savona Foodservice, who will be helping us with transport.

We have already begun packing but we will need a few volunteers to move from distribution to packing during the week. We also need two more volunteers to help us clear the barn to move items there. If you are available please contact pa.cherwellcollective@gmail.com.

If you’re able, donations to support our continued community services are greatly appreciated. You can donate to Cherwell Larder directly here, or support our campaign to save a café and build a community space in Witney here.

If you’re broadly interested in joining our community of incredible volunteers, please register your interest by filling out this form. We are always thrilled to have new people join our forces, but now more than ever some extra helping hands will be greatly appreciated.

Other Solutions

We will also test other locations to try and take our services to more rural areas and pockets of deprivation. That process will be slow, determining travel time and distance, facilities needs, proximity to services, access routes, etc. We will meet as a team to debrief after each test and to discuss learnings.

We will be purchasing a fully equipped kitchen for Climatarian Kitchen in a portacabin. We are currently seeking land with water and electricity hookups that we could purchase or could be gifted long-term for the cause to use for this purpose. We have a few leads but are again considering location, proximity to services, access for the vulnerable, etc. 

The long term vision for this space would be a series of portacabins or railcars.  In each space would be surplus for people to collect at their convenience. Food, furniture, clothing, etc. Across the cars would be a roof protecting diners below. Our inspiration for this set up comes from DISH, part of the innovation project in Harwell: https://www.tucktrucks.co.uk/dish/. 

If you have any input or want to be involved in the plan please do help – we’d love to hear your thoughts at info@cherwellcollective.com.

A Note From Emily, Founder and Managing Director

Our mission is to provide a safe space, open to all, to come together and support the building of climate resilience and waste reduction locally. The undeniable benefit of our mission is increased wellbeing and better access to essentials for the community including the extremely vulnerable. 

Day in and day out we are building a more resilient community. To the climate crisis. To the cost of living crisis. It can be easy when we are not appreciated to feel unvalued, but never underestimate what you have been doing at Exeter Hall whether you have been with us for a month, a day, or for years. This is a marathon, not a sprint, there will be hills and valleys. Right now this is only a detour. Don’t forget the path. 

What does it mean to build a more resilient community? 

To me it means to increase the chances for a good life. 

All people need food to live. 

When our doors are open, people can access food. 
They can access what they need to live… but some need free food, others need to save money, some just don’t want to waste food. 
Some just know if they come in to shop they might find a kind word or someone who understands their struggle. 
No matter why a person comes through our door, what we hear time and time again is how those visits improve their life. 

It is, when everything else is peeled away, that simple. 

We must continue to do what we do. Sharing resources. Sharing time. Sharing skills. Making sure that our space and operations are barrier free and that all are welcome. There is only one fundamental truth that is important in the grand scheme of this all:

All people need food to live. When our doors are open, we help people live. 

It does not matter where our doors are. It matters if they are open.