Cooking skills are a popular food and health activity with all age groups. Good things abound from cooking skills activities. Learning to create an attractive tasty meal, using a range of techniques, is great for building confidence. Cooking sessions are also an opportunity to support people trying to manage on a tight budget, and learn about food hygiene, using equipment safely and reducing food waste. And there’s the social side, learning to cook and eating together with others can be just as important to some groups as skill development.
Anne Royle of Pathfinder Dogs recognised a need to support blind and partially-sighted people with basic meal preparation. She began by running ad-hoc sessions and was awarded CFHS funding to develop a series of workshops.
Read ‘Pathfinder Dogs – Cooking Blind workshops’ here
Edinburgh Community Food’s Chris Mantle was a member of CFHS Cooking Skills Evaluation Study Group. This case study describes now that group and networking with others shifted his thinking in how he and his colleagues run cooking skills courses.
Read ‘Edinburgh Community Food – learning from others’ here
The Forth Valley Sensory Centre in Falkirk has been running popular cooking courses for people with visual loss. The classes began last year, led by the Centre’s Café Cook – David Black, who is blind himself. This case study looks at what he achieved and what challenges he had to overcome.
Read ‘Forth Valley Sensory Centre – cooking courses for people with visual loss’ hereFiona Matthew from the NHS Grampian Confidence to Cook programme took part in the CFHS cooking skills evaluation study group. In this case study, Fiona explains what she learned most from being part of the study group, what learning she passed onto others and in turn, what impact it had on their work.
Read ‘Confidence to Cook – sharing evaluation skills to improve cooking skills courses’ here
A cooking skills course for young asylum seekers and refugees in Glasgow has enabled Youth Community Support Agency (YCSA) to integrate a wide range of skills into their learning, as well as social contacts and ways into getting involved with the local community.
Read ‘YCSA – using cooking to support young asylum seekers and refugees’ hereShiona from West Lothian Council Health Improvement Team describes how the ‘Get Cooking’ programme can tailor what they offer to be as inclusive as possible. Their courses are often part of a wider programme of activities with the focus on education, raising awareness and building skills.
Read ‘Get Cooking – delivering cooking courses in West Lothian’ hereThis case study focuses on the challenges of sourcing low cost, healthy food for young families in the small rural village of Kelloholm. Working with FareShare, the Action for Children Family Centre families provides cooking courses and food deliveries.
Read ‘Action for Children – sourcing low cost, healthy food locally’ hereCFINE (Community Food Initiatives North East) offers a holistic community food and health service which includes supporting people with issues such as money, employment, energy costs and housing. This case study looks at how they use cooking groups to link people with other agencies who can help.
Read ‘CFINE – signposting support through cooking groups’ here
‘Get Cooking, Get Shopping’ courses focus on basic nutrition, food safety, cooking methods and recipes for people in the south of Glasgow. This case study looks at how they identify participants who may be struggling to have enough food, both before and during the courses.
Read ‘Get Cooking, Get Shopping – reaching people experiencing food insecurity’ here
This case study focuses on Edinburgh Community Food’s course with women who are in the criminal justice system and explores making recipe adaptations for participants who may be facing significant barriers to having a healthy balanced diet.
Read ‘Edinburgh Community Food – cooking with women in the criminal justice system’ here
Edinburgh Cyrenians Good Food tutor ran a session on public health issues with the first-year nursing students at Queen Margaret University. Students also learned about the role the Cyrenians and other third sector organisations play in improving people’s health in the community.
Read ‘Cyrenians Good Food tutor goes to Queen Margaret University’ here
Confidence to Cook aims to promote healthy eating messages through practical hands-on cookery sessions, particularly in low-income communities with vulnerable groups. Sessions are run across Grampian in a range of venues.
Read ‘Confidence to Cook – community kitchens’ here
Sunlite Café in Stirling gives people with mental health challenges the opportunity to gain self-confidence and skills in a friendly, supportive environment. Members are involved in running the café and offered food and hygiene training, including REHIS Elementary Cooking Skills.
Read ‘Let’s Make it Better – Sunlite Café’ here
Fife Health and Social Care – a pragmatic approach to cooking skills
Lyndsay Clark from Fife Health and Social Care was a member of the CFHS cooking skills evaluation study group. In this case study, Lyndsay tells us what learning inspired her most and what changes she has since made to her own work to use a more pragmatic approach to cooking skills.
Read ‘Fife Health and Social Care – a pragmatic approach to cooking skills’ here