At Alexandra Rose, we want everyone to have access to healthy, sustainable and culturally appropriate food where they live – and we want the way people access food to be rooted in dignity and choice.
What makes Rose Vouchers so special is that we’re not just giving people enough food to get by; we work directly with communities to provide a genuine nutritional safety net. What does that look like? As part of our Early Years projects, families with young children can spend Rose Vouchers on their choice of fresh fruit & veg at a local market or other independent, healthy food businesses.
That’s why we’re so delighted that the Childhood Trust are supporting our Big Give campaign this Winter, meaning that every pound donated to Alexandra Rose between 2nd and 9th December will be doubled, giving our Rose Vouchers for Early Years projects a huge boost!
Across the UK, healthy food now costs more than twice as much as ultra-processed options, which are often high in fat, sugar and salt. Parents are bombarded with junk food advertising, and high streets are flooded with fast food chains. It’s no surprise that 1 in 5 British children leave primary school facing a lifetime of food-related ill health. This figure is even higher in areas with the highest levels of deprivation.
Rose Vouchers ensure that families never have to cut fruit & veg out of their weekly shop. Families like Jenny’s. Jenny lives with her partner and their three young children and got involved in our Early Years project through her local children’s centre. She told us that Rose Vouchers have made an enormous difference, saying, “It’s a regular weekly occurrence where we will 100% be having fruit and vegetables in our home, and that’s fresh fruit and vegetables.”
Referring to the project as ‘a lifesaver’, Jenny told us that, “My daughter is actually sick today, and I think it instils healthy attitudes in them as well, so she’s actively asking for healthy food. She just asked for a fruit platter. I think it is really important, especially for children, to start it young and build up from there.”
We know that food-related ill health isn’t because parents can’t be bothered to cook or prefer to rely on unhealthy fast food. Instead, it’s the direct result of a food system that is broken, which reduces options for families like Jenny’s, who often live in places where it’s easier to buy a blueberry vape than fresh blueberries.
This week, we will be working with our incredible network of supporters to raise money and transform local food systems, improving the health of children across the UK. If you’d like more information about the Big Give and how donation matching works, you can find more information here.