Weekly pop-up Syrian kitchen integrating families through food
A local entrepreneur is hoping to help integrate Syrian families into the Gateshead community through the use of food.
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic and realising there was a lack of support for resettled families in the local area, Corrina Mulholland decided to set up a weekly pop-up Syrian kitchen.
Alteam Meana, which means ‘food together’ in Arabic, prepares and delivers hot, homemade meals to Syrian families in the community.
And Corrina, who set up a foodfocused social enterprise, Gateshead Community Organisation, along with her team have so far distributed over 500 meals.
The 44-year-old said: “At the start of the pandemic I realised there was a lot of organisations were helping
non-halal people and I thought if a Syrian person gets referred to a food bank it would be hard as they wouldn’t know what to do.
“So I thought it would be good if we could give the community their own kind of food, what they want and are used to.
“I was aware in Deckham there was a large concentration of resettled families and that it’s a quite deprived area, so I wanted to help with integration by sharing Syrian food with the non-Syrian and local people.
“My idea is to start with food then hopefully post-Covid make it more of a social project, as I support 20 families now and would love to do more to bring the community together.”
The scheme has been supported by funding allocated by the Home Office which is used to support refugees across the country.
In Gateshead, it covers support
ranging from social care to education. It is also used to support community projects, like the Syrian kitchen, that promotes integration.
After contacting The Gateshead Housing Company’s Refugee Resettlement Team, Corrina is now able to provide volunteering opportunities to a family of refugees from Syria.
Every Tuesday, mum, Najwa and her daughter Nina use their traditional cooking skills to shop, prepare and cook meals and share Syrian cuisine with others in their community.
And Nina’s dad drives them around their local area to deliver 80 meals a day to support 20 families a week.
Najwa said: “I’m really pleased that I’ve been given this opportunity to help my community.”
Alongside the Syrian kitchen, Gateshead Community Organisation also distributed FareShare food parcels during the pandemic.
Before coronavirus, the team worked hard to support a range of communities.
Previous projects include healthy eating workshops and partnership work with Age Concern and Corrina also offers work placements to Gateshead College students.
In the future, Gateshead Community Organisation plans to branch out.
Corrina added: “The pandemic gave us a chance to reflect on the work we’ve done so far. Now, we want to expand and introduce nonfood related projects.
“The local community is at the heart of everything we do, and we want to help people reach their full potential.”
For more information visit the Gateshead Community Organisation’s website at www.gatesheadcommunity.org/ and to donate visit: www.gofundme.com/f/GatesheadCommunityOrg