The road-up covers the number of experience and information that make our capital nice – from politics and media, the humanities, music, meals, to science and drugs.
The charity gave out the equal of 32 million meals to individuals throughout each London borough.
Over the subsequent few months, we’ll be showcasing extra individuals from the listing, so ensure you regulate our feed.
You’ll find The Commonplace on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you stream.
Right here’s a totally automated transcript of this episode:
From London, I am Rachelle Abbott, and that is The Commonplace.
The London Commonplace is unveiling The Commonplace 100, a listing of the highest 100 women and men shaping the capital in 2024.
The extraordinary lineup covers a variety of classes and sectors that make our capital nice, from politics and media, the humanities, music, meals, to science and drugs.
To seek out out extra, here is The London Commonplace’s editor-in-chief, Dylan Jones.
Our capital is clearly the best metropolis on the planet, and now we have such a wealth of artistic expertise in London.
And periodically, we wish to have fun that, which is what we have executed this week by selecting 100 individuals who the collective minds of The Commonplace suppose are shaping our metropolis.
And that is individuals concerned in music and trend, tradition and leisure, politics, science, transport, artwork, and setting, eating places, all kinds of people who find themselves usually contributing to the success and the cultural IP and the expansion of our metropolis.
London is so nice as a result of I believe there’s something regenerative in regards to the metropolis.
Technology after era of extremely proficient individuals appear to come back to London and are born by London.
And despite the fact that London could be a very difficult place to develop up in and even to maneuver to, it frequently surprises itself, I believe, with this, as I say, this fixed regeneration of younger terribly proficient individuals.
And this listing is a mirrored image of a few of these younger individuals in addition to some individuals who have been extra established and who contribute to the IP and the overall artistic welfare of our metropolis.
And you may see this listing in at the moment’s paper, The London Commonplace, so please decide one up.
Over the subsequent few months, we’ll be showcasing these on the listing.
At the moment, we’re kicking off with Charlotte Hill, Chief Government of Meals Redistribution Charity, The Felix Venture, which final yr gave out the equal of 32 million meals to individuals throughout each London borough.
Welcome to the podcast, Charlotte.
Thanks a lot for having me.
No, it is a pleasure to have you ever.
For any listeners that do not know, what’s the story behind The Felix Venture?
What do you do and the way do you use?
So I’ve the good privilege of being the Chief Government of The Felix Venture.
We rescue surplus meals that might in any other case go to waste.
We type it in our warehouses or we prepare dinner it in Felix’s kitchen, after which we distribute it to over 1,200 charities daily, proper throughout the yr, 364 days a yr.
And we try this with the assistance of 15,000 wonderful volunteers.
And we’re on monitor to do about 37 million meals this yr, to present you a way of the dimensions.
And the rationale why we’re referred to as The Felix Venture is as a result of there was an excellent younger man referred to as Felix, who was keen about each meals waste and meals insecurity.
He had performed soccer in opposition to boys who had not eaten breakfast.
And he thought this was completely horrible, that there have been boys of his age who hadn’t eaten.
And so he was a passionate campaigner about this work.
Now, very tragically, and abruptly, he died at age 14.
And his mother and father, after his dying, thought moderately than do one thing round meningitis, which is what he died of, they thought what can be impacts that Felix would need to have on this planet had he lived.
And they also arrange The Felix Venture, which is that this magical group that genuinely offers hope to hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of Londoners each week who’re in any other case struggling to place meals on the desk, in addition to having a very important environmental influence.
And the way lengthy did it take from growing the concept to when it kicked off?
So we’re eight years previous as a corporation now.
So we had been a very younger charity nonetheless, and now we have scaled extremely shortly, however it began off simply as a really small type of storage in West London, the place we had been doing actually small volumes.
And has scaled now, we have 4 completely different warehouses that do meals throughout London in North, South, East and West London.
We’ve one thing referred to as Felix’s Multibank out West the place we rescue different surplus objects like toiletries and bedding and hygiene merchandise that we give to communities who’re struggling.
now we have Felix’s Kitchen the place we prepare dinner about 5,000 meals a day.
Are you doing any work with the federal government?
We’re working with the federal government.
I imply, we work with native authorities on a regular basis.
We work with Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, who’s been an incredible supporter of our work, each throughout the type of vacation starvation programmes we’re doing.
However truly, we’re for the time being asking the nationwide authorities to actually assist us entry extra surplus meals.
There’s a lot meals wasted on the farm gate significantly that we might be accessing.
However equally, there’s a lot of completely different legislative or regulatory issues the federal government might try this imply we might entry much more meals.
So there’s rather a lot we’re asking Rachel Reeves to do that week, but additionally truly throughout authorities round how we are able to most help individuals with getting that meals out of the meals system to individuals in want.
Inform us about your background.
What led you to work at The Felix Venture?
That is my third charity chief government job.
I used to be a charity chief government of two different organizations working with younger individuals previous to the pandemic.
After which through the pandemic, I noticed how many individuals had been struggling.
And this trigger simply actually spoke to me as one thing that was actually essential.
And so I utilized to affix The Felix Venture about three years in the past now.
And can’t let you know what a joyful job it’s.
I believe you may think about that typically whenever you’re coping with people who find themselves actually struggling to eat, it might really feel prefer it’s a very hopeless and a troublesome time.
And it by no means appears like that at Felix.
Felix is a spot the place individuals come of their hundreds to volunteer as a result of it’s an empowering, joyful, can-do place the place a neighborhood of individuals come collectively to say, We do not need this meals to go to waste.
We would like it to go to individuals who actually need it.
Truly, it is essentially the most energizing, superior place to work.
It appears like truthfully such a present of a job to get to do.
And what drives you in your position as Chief Exec?
Effectively, a lot of issues.
I suppose the very first thing is the influence now we have.
You would need to have a coronary heart of stone to not really feel actually happy with the truth that one, this meals can be going to waste if it wasn’t from this group, which is in itself an environmental scandal.
However secondly, to see the influence the meals has, you recognize, I am a mum of two, I can’t think about the stress of not with the ability to put meals on the desk for them.
So I believe one of many issues that drives me is, it is sensible to see the influence that this meals has.
However the different factor is that neighborhood of individuals I described earlier, it’s so motivating to be surrounded by such sensible, spectacular, dedicated, devoted colleagues, colleagues and volunteers who all come collectively, in addition to that wider neighborhood of meals provide companions, the neighborhood organizations and funders and volunteers.
It is simply, it is an incredible place to work.
So I am motivated by the impacts, however I am extremely motivated by the individuals as properly.
What’s essentially the most difficult a part of your job?
Essentially the most troublesome half is the truth that we help 1,200 neighborhood organizations, however now we have about 750 on our ready listing.
In order that’s 750 home violence shelters or homeless shelters or meals banks who’re all asking for our meals and who we won’t but present to.
And except we get three issues, a rise in funding, a rise in meals and a rise in volunteers, we simply will not be capable of attain them.
I wish to be scared and a bit challenged daily by doing one thing outdoors my consolation zone.
And I believe that is the way you develop.
And failure and all of these issues is how we get higher.
We’ll see you again right here in only a minute.
So, how does it really feel to be on The Commonplace’s 100 listing?
I believe it is a large testomony to The Felix Venture, truly, and the place it has now, as we need to be considered one of London’s best-loved charities.
And it actually appears like that.
This is a company by Londoners for Londoners.
As I mentioned, hundreds of Londoners come and provides their time to Felix yearly.
And that is as a result of it is an incredible place.
So clearly, it is a large privilege to be named.
However truly, that is about The Felix Venture.
That is about the truth that this group is now a very essential a part of the infrastructure of London.
I leap off the bed each morning massively motivated by my job.
And naturally, it is beautiful for an incredible establishment like The Night Commonplace, who’ve been an unimaginable associate to The Felix Venture for a lot of, a few years.
A number of our volunteers I communicate to, after I say, how did you discover out about The Felix Venture?
They typically say, I examine it in The Commonplace.
So I at all times really feel like we have this lovely type of partnership with The Commonplace, the place you have actually helped us develop and have impacts.
So there’s something beautiful about The Commonplace, recognising the work of The Felix Venture and all that we do.
And it is after all motivating for us all to have that work recognised.
So an enormous thanks to The Commonplace.
It is actually humbling and beautiful that you’ve got been with us on this journey.
Again to you and your profession.
Have you ever confronted any challenges that you just really feel have helped you in the long term?
I at all times say to my crew that I would love to do one thing daily that offers me a sweaty palm second.
I wish to be scared and a bit challenged daily by doing one thing outdoors my consolation zone.
And I believe that is the way you develop.
And failure and all of these issues is how we get higher.
I at all times try to say to my youngsters in addition to my colleagues, like, do not be afraid of failure.
And for those who’re not failing, it means you are not making an attempt.
It means you are not making an attempt new issues.
It means you are not innovating.
And goodness, I’ve learnt essentially the most from failure.
And in all types of various roles, the place issues have not gone fairly how I wished it to, my colleague and I speak about full profit.
How do you get the total profit out of any scenario you are in?
And even when it has been a very, actually garbage day, on the finish of the day, for those who can type of look within the mirror and say, have I received the total profit out of today, which suggests have I taken each ounce of the educational out of the day?
Then I believe that is a great day, even when it has been a troublesome day.
Now, you meet lots of people in your line of labor.
Are there any examples that stick out in your thoughts of a few of the individuals that you’ve got helped via the years?
I at all times suppose that we type of should not body it that it is about how The Felix Venture has helped individuals as a result of we’re genuinely a partnership.
So all of these neighborhood organizations, and I am going to offer you a few examples that we distribute meals to, with out them, then it is simply meals.
However what these neighborhood organizations do is that they use that surplus meals for wonderful social good.
So if, for instance, we will a trustful belief meals financial institution, the place we’re taking meals to them, however alongside the meals, they’re providing residents recommendation bureau recommendation to help individuals out of poverty, or they’re providing employability abilities, or there is a well being employee there ensuring vaccines are being distributed, or individuals are having their blood strain checked.
You understand, alongside getting meals, which is after all a necessary factor, they’re getting all the remainder of these issues which can be serving to them step out of that cycle of poverty, or no matter it’s that is led them to being there.
So, I do not suppose we should always give it some thought as being a means that we’re serving to individuals.
I believe it is a means that we’re partnering with wonderful grassroots neighborhood organizations to do unimaginable social impacts.
And one which involves thoughts is that this wonderful chap referred to as Father Neil, who’s a vicar in East London, in Tower Hamlets, very near our depot in Tower Hamlets.
And I speak to Father Neil most weeks.
He comes into the depot, or we simply take meals out to him.
And he at all times describes the influence that that meals has for, I believe it is about 200 households each week.
And he describes Thursday as the brand new Sunday at his church, as a result of Thursday is the day they provide out the Felix meals.
Nevertheless it’s additionally some of the impactful issues that he and his neighborhood have executed.
They have been working with The Felix Venture for a few years now.
And really, the tales that he comes and tells me each week in regards to the influence that the meals and the multibank merchandise are having for his parishioners.
What are your plans for the long run with The Felix Venture?
Are you going to department out nationwide?
We’re actually centered on London.
We all know that London completely wants us.
As I simply described, we nonetheless have an enormous variety of neighborhood organizations we’re not reaching but.
And many of the neighborhood organizations we distribute meals to are asking us for extra.
So we’re going to redouble our efforts.
We’re very a lot centered on how we are able to work with the federal government to try to entry extra surplus meals in a way more systemic means.
We work hand in glove with the retailers and producers.
However as I mentioned, there’s a lot of various things we might do with authorities that might actually make a giant step change in how we entry surplus meals.
So a giant push for us is pulling a few of these levers that we are able to pull working in authorities with a lot of our different companions within the meals redistribution sector to actually drive correct embedded systemic change round how we entry meals on this nation.
And we’re opening a very thrilling processing unit in South London at first of subsequent yr the place we will be turning huge seasonal gluts of surplus meals into issues like soups and sauces and all types of various issues, dehydrating issues, turning them into pesto and issues.
So we’re at all times innovating, we’re at all times making an attempt new issues, however that is going to be opening within the new yr as an thrilling new enterprise for The Felix Venture.
Can I simply ask yet one more query truly about you?
Once you had been rising up, had been there any traits you had that tie into now, or is your profession one thing you would not have imagined?
So I at all times credit score an enormous quantity of my drive to have social influence to my mum.
So I grew up in a single guardian family with a mum who did not have a lot and she or he labored so extremely laborious to ensure that me and my sister had selections.
She at all times grew up not likely having selections herself as a result of she grew up in actually robust instances.
And she or he at all times mentioned to us that if I do nothing else, I need to ensure you women have selections and choices.
However alongside doing that, she additionally volunteered domestically and she or he would take us alongside.
Ever since I used to be a child, like I keep in mind going together with my mum when she was volunteering.
She did not have any alternative however to take us together with her.
So I type of grew up with the concept of service, that service was what you probably did, that being a part of a neighborhood and caring about that neighborhood and being a part of it.
Even when you did not have very a lot your self, you could possibly at all times give your time.
And so I believe due to the position mannequin I had in my mum, who’s simply an incredible and decided lady.
Yeah, I at all times really feel actually fortunate that even when we grew up with what would not historically have been thought that we had a lot, truly we had rather a lot, we had rather a lot as a result of I had a terrific position mannequin who instructed me that serving to different individuals is definitely the key to happiness.
And it is utterly true.
To view the total listing, head to straightforward.co.uk or decide up this week’s paper.
This podcast is again tomorrow at 4pm.
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