Community Fridge

It’s all about food waste!

Taking And Leaving Food

Come down to Unit 12 and use the Fridge and Shelves. You can leave in date food that is surplus to your requirements and/or take food that you can realistically use.

The Fridge

We -can- accept:

  • Sealed packaged food
  • Cheeses
  • Fresh Fruit
  • Fresh vegetables
  • Table sauces
  • Pastry
  • Unopened pasteurised milk and yoghurt
  • Unopened fruit juices
  • Salads
  • Fresh eggs (treacable Lion stamped eggs with clean shells and a use by date)
  • All food items must be clearly labelled, showing ingredients and allergens

We -can’t- accept:

  • Food without a complete list of ingredients, including allergens
  • Cooked food from your home or unregistered sources
  • Unpasteurised milk
  • Cooked rice
  • Raw milk cheeses
  • Pátés
  • Bean sprouts
  • Products which could contain any of the above ingredients
  • Unlabelled multiple-ingredient items
  • Alcohol
  • Products that contain alcohol
  • Energy drinks
The Shelves

We -can- accept:

  • UHT milk
  • Bread and bakery items
  • Juices
  • Table sauces
  • Cooking sauces and oils
  • Honey, jams, jellies, preserves
  • Sealed fermented or pickled food items (eg., gherkins, olives, sauerkraut)
  • Tin cans (eg, vegetables, fruit, soup, beans, pudding)
  • Packed cereals
  • Fruit with casing (eg, citrus fruit, bananas, mangoes)
  • Dried goods (eg, pasta, rice, grains, oats)
  • Sweets and sugar confectionery
  • Biscuits
  • Coffee and tea
  • Non-perishable foods
  • If you have surplus food that doesn’t need refrigerating but is still at risk of going to waste, you can put it on the shelves
  • We only accept food items that are unopened and clearly labelled, showing ingredients and allergens
shop & save today, visit our food pantry

How to use the Community fridge and shelves

Who can use it?

Anyone. As long as you fill in the log, anyone can use it

Step 1

Please use the log next to the fridge and complete the record sheet

Step 2

Please make sure there is at least one day left on use by dates

Step 3

Put your item in the fridge and/or on the shelves

Step 4

Take the item you want from the fridge and/or shelves

Step 5

Please check the fridge door is closed

Use by means do not use after this date “Best Before” means you can still use it but it may not be as gorgeous.

Every effort made to ensure the fridge and shelves are checked daily, but you take and use items at your own risk.

Community Fridge Opening Times:

Termtime:

  • Monday: 9.30 am – 7 pm
  • Tuesday: 9.30 am – 7 pm
  • Wednesday: 9.30 am – 7 pm
  • Thursday: 9.30 am – 7 pm
  • Friday: 9.30 am – 7 pm
  • Saturday: 9 am – 3 pm
  • Sunday: Closed

School Holidays:

  • Monday: 9.30 am – 4.30 pm
  • Tuesday: 9.30 am – 4.30 pm
  • Wednesday: 9.30 am – 4.30 pm
  • Thursday: 9.30 am – 4.30 pm
  • Friday: 9.30 am – 4.30 pm
  • Saturday: Closed
  • Sunday: Closed

Reducing Food Waste


Food waste is a big issue. A third of all food produced globally is wasted. If it were a country, it would be the third biggest emitter of greenhouse gases globally. Most of this food waste is avoidable and could have been eaten had it been better managed. Community Fridges and Shelves are one tried and tested way of stopping good food ending up in the bin and promoting a spirit of sharing and mutual support within a community. They work on an honesty basis, making surplus food freely available to members of the public. Surplus food is donated by local members of the public and then made available for all. As the fridge and shelves are all about preventing food waste they are available for anyone to use.

Lara Tarrant, who is responsible for the Fridge and Shelves says, “This isn’t about need, it’s about avoiding waste and if we can all do a bit to reduce our household waste then that adds up! Whoever you are, please come and use the Fridge and Shelves.  In 2023 the Community Fridge network of 450 fridges saved over 7,500 tonnes of food from waste and shared 17.8 million meals worth of food.  There are now over 600 fridges around the country and we are pleased to be one of them.

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