Eat Smart volunteers at REfUSE Café play a key role in engaging young people to make healthier, more sustainable food choices.
They support our workshops and community sessions in schools, helping children learn about where their food comes from and come up with plans to reduce food waste. It’s a hands-on, people-focused role that’s all about sharing knowledge, encouragement, and a love of food.
Eat Smart volunteers help turn learning into laughter, ingredients into inspiration, and simple recipes into moments of connection — making a real difference to young people and their families across our community.
Eat Smart is an education project working with different primary schools across the region each half term. It aims to empower children, in partnership with their school staff and catering providers, to take action to reduce food waste across their entire school site.
REfUSE volunteers make a fantastic contribution in supporting the delivery of Eat Smart workshops in classrooms from nurseries to Year 6 where we explore the reasons for putting less food in the bin, the energy and resources that it takes to produce their meals, and we throw down the challenge to be brave and try
new foods.
REfUSE volunteers are also involved in food audits across the school site, collecting data and talking to children about their food.
In addition to Eat Smart, established REfUSE volunteers are engaged in running activities in the café and warehouse to enable young people to understand how
REfUSE supports a healthy and sustainable food system and what we can all do at home to become food waste saving heroes.
Please note that work with schools requires a DBS check (organised by REfUSE) and we ask that volunteers who are interested in engagement roles first volunteer in general café roles for an extended period of time.
Working with young people is an important aspect of our work at REfUSE and training is provided for all role. Please ask for more information.
Confident public speakers.
Comfortable working with young people.
Clean DBS.
Completed at least one volunteering shift at REfUSE - can be arranged for new volunteers.
During school hours and some evenings.
