National Lottery Award for Community Chef

As you may know, your votes helped us to win the People’s Projects, enabling us to deliver our Man with a Pan project in Surrey.

I’m happy to be able to share some more good news. I’ve been honoured as a National Lottery Hero and awarded a “Big Surprise”The ‘Big Surprise’ is a 90-second weekly slot during the ad break of Saturday night primetime ITV shows – It’s an opportunity to show where Lottery funding is spent and gives my work national recognition. The short goes out at 20.40pm on Saturday 20 October. Below is a short preview.

It was a complete surprise. I turned up to the Man with a Pan headquarters prepped and ready to start an new course. Instead of going into the kitchen, my co-worker Maureen lead me into the hall adjacent which was filled with dry ice and festooned with party lights.  An uproarious cheers went up from the banquet table around which were seated a mass of previous students.  The National Lottery had arranged for the men to cook a banquet with another chef, putting into practice all the skills they have learnt. To see all the men again and have them cook for me was a humbling delight! I feel honoured to be able to do this work and proud to have received this recognition.

The project is ongoing in Surrey and I’m about to start delivering Man with a Pan in Kent and East Sussex.