Food pantries
If you are finding your money does not stretch far enough and you are struggling to afford the cost of food, a food pantry can provide you with a heavily discounted food shop. To receive support from a food pantry you will pay a weekly membership fee (between £3.50 and £4.50), which will allow you to shop at the pantry each week. Pantries look similar to shops and you are able to select a certain amount of food based on your own food preferences. There are 5 pantries located across Enfield.
Enfield Town Pantry
Enfield Town Library
66 Church Street
Enfield
EN2 6AX
Open Thursdays and Fridays. Referral only through the Welfare advice and support team - make a referral to the team.
Edmonton Green Pantry
Edmonton Green Library
36-44 South Mall
Edmonton
N9 0TN
Open Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Referral only through the Welfare advice and support team - make a referral to the team.
Ordnance Road Pantry
Ordnance Road Methodist Church
100 Ordnance Road
Enfield
EN3 6BW
Open Saturdays, from 1pm to 3pm. No referral required. For more information, email ordnancepantry@gmail.com.
Bounces Road Pantry
229 Bounces Road
Edmonton
N9 8LN
Open Wednesdays and Thursdays, from 9am to 3pm No referral required. For more information, email sadiyaam@hotmail.co.uk.
Fore Street Pantry
Edmonton Methodist Church
Fore Street
Edmonton
N9 0PN
Open Saturdays, from 11am to 1pm. No referral required.
Food co-operatives
Food co-ops are small buying groups, providing their members with free and affordable groceries, sourced in bulk and distributed at a very low price. Cooperation Town food co-ops are owned by their members and run according to local needs. Members decide collectively on how to organise and are responsible for the day to day running of the co-op. While each Cooperation Town co-op is independent, the network is designed to share resources and support across the movement. For more information on joining a food co-operative in Enfield, email will@cooperation.town or visit Cooperation Town.
Visit your local food bank
If you find yourself struggling and have no money to afford food, a food bank can provide you with emergency food support. Food banks do not charge you for food and will provide you with a food parcel to last a few days. To view food banks in your area, zoom into the map below and click on the blue pins.
Free school meals
You can check if your child can get free school meals in England. If your child is eligible for free school meals, they'll also qualify for the holiday activities and food program (HAF). You must apply before each holiday. Visit GOV.UK - Apply for free school meals.
Holiday activities and food programme
The holiday activities and food programme runs during the summer, Christmas and Easter holidays. This holiday provision is for school-aged children from reception to year 11 who receive benefits-related free school meals and attend an Enfield school or live in Enfield. The programme includes enriching and engaging activities as well as lunch.
Supermarket loyalty schemes
Lidl offer a supermarket loyalty scheme that is available on your phone as an app only. This is a free service that gives you a variety of extras and rewards like coupons, free bakery items, a free cleaning item, money off vouchers and a Lidl Scratch card.
You can shop at Iceland using a Food Club Card which is available exclusively to new customers. This helps you spread the cost of shopping, both instore and online, using a preloaded card. You can spread the cost of your shopping via credit provided by Fair for You, interest-free. Visit Fair for You for terms and conditions, eligibility and how to apply.
Eat for a £1 at Asda
Asda is offering those aged 60 and over the chance to enjoy soup, a roll and unlimited tea and coffee for just £1 in any of their cafés all day and every day throughout November and December. Children aged under 16 can also eat for just £1 at any time of the day in Asda cafés, seven days a week, with no minimum adult spend required.
Healthy Start
The Healthy Start scheme is an NHS scheme that helps women who are pregnant or families with young children to buy food such as milk, fruit and vegetables. To be eligible for the scheme you must receive certain benefits. You could be entitled to up to £8.50 per week for your child. To find out more about the scheme and to find information flyers translated into Turkish, Albanian, Somali, Bulgarian, Begali and Polish, visit Healthy Start.
Cooking on a budget
Here are some resources that can help you to cook healthy, tasty, affordable meals at home:
- BBC Good Food - Budget healthy recipes
- BBC Good Food - Jack Monroe recipes
- BDA (The Association of UK Dietitians) - Cooking on a budget
- Diabetes UK - Cooking on a budget
- World Cancer Research Fund - Learn to love your kitchen cupboard essentials
- Tiny Budget Cooking - Free cookbook, eat well for £18 a week
Eating well
For tips on eating well, use our multicultural Eatwell guide and key messages (PDF, 14625.46 KB). For more information, visit Healthy Enfield - Eating well and staying active.
Food safety
Following food safety and labelling guidance can help you avoid wasting food unnecessarily. Its helpful to know the difference between ‘use-by’ food labels and ‘best before’ food labels. The Food Standards Agency gives information on how to understand best before and use-by dates on food labels.
Basic essentials
Sebby's Corner supplies basic essentials such as clothing, nappies, formula and baby equipment to local families living in poverty.
Search for food online
Too Good To Go allows you to search for unsold food near you and buy and collect it for a great price. You can also obtain information on waste fighting recipes to life changing storage tips and discover ways to save food in your own kitchen. You can also get the app.