Gleaning Coordinator

Eggcup, LESS and FoodFutures are seeking a Gleaning Coordinator to support us in developing and delivering the Closing Loops Project: stimulating a regenerative food economy in North Lancashire. This role offers a fantastic opportunity for someone who is passionate about food and sustainability to become part of a strong community that is taking action to create a thriving local food system that is healthy, resilient and fair.

**Job title**: Gleaning Project Coordinator and Trainer

**Responsible to**: Eggcup and the Closing Loops project coordinator

**Salary**: £24,200 (starting salary).

**Hours of work**: This post is 35 hours per week. Some weekend and evening work will occasionally be required. We can offer flexible working.

**Place of work**: Your place of work will be the Eggcup depot in Lancaster, although some home working can also be accommodated. The post will involve some travel within Lancashire and South Cumbria, and occasionally further afield.

**Holidays**: 28 days per annum, inclusive of bank holidays.

**Contract**: 4 year fixed term

**Background to FoodFutures, Eggcup and this role**

**FoodFutures** is North Lancashire’s award-winning regional food partnership. It is working to build a collaborative community of practitioners, policy makers and researchers working on food matters in the local area. It is made up of representatives from the local farming community, local food businesses, the public sector, Lancaster City Council, NGOs, community food groups and our local academic institutions, including Lancaster University.

Since the strategy launch, the partnership has sought funding to practically take forward elements of the strategy. The Closing Loops project and this role is the outcome of this work so far. The four key intended outcomes for the Closing Loops project are:
1. Zero waste initiatives, closed loop enterprises and sustainable consumption lifestyles start to become normalised and a source of local inspiration for people of all backgrounds
2. There is increased access to opportunities to learn about and develop the skills needed to support, be supported and initiate zero waste initiatives, regenerative enterprises, sustainable consumption and lifestyle practices
3. Locally sourced, seasonal, sustainably produced and packaged food and other goods are more accessible across the District and infrastructure is in place to support a range of people and organisations to re-distribute, compost, re-sell, re-purpose and re-cycle ‘waste’.
4. There is a thriving REconomy in which local communities are shaping a local, regenerative economy in terms of local enterprise but also community networks, community assets, resource sharing and projects.

**Eggcup** is all about food, people and community. We are a registered charity that stops surplus food from going to waste and gets it to people instead. Our weekly food scheme helps our members to save money on food, and that makes life more affordable for those in our community on a tight budget. We believe that everyone has the right to food, but no one should have to rely on handouts. Our members play an active part in a shared community solution.

We run a professional food distribution hub where we take in food that would otherwise go to waste - more than 30 tonnes every month The food is used to supply our two community food outlets as well as many other community projects across our district. Most of our work is done by our fantastic volunteers, many of whom are Eggcup members.

**The role**

The role will focus on 4 main areas of work:

- Develop and update databases mapping food surplus and information on seasonal gluts from local farms/orchards/community gardens to enable efficient coordination and redistribution of surplus food
- Research and develop relationships with commercial food business and distributors in order to secure an increasing volume of food donations
- Coordinate a programme of events and workdays that facilitate and support the development of a gleaning network adapted for North Lancashire that reduces the total amount of edible food going to waste on farms, in gardens, allotments and orchards.
- Grow Eggcup’s network of local food businesses offering surplus food locally and work with the Closing Loops team to support these businesses in minimising waste and climate impact through campaigns.

**Responsibilities**:

- Coordinate the research, development and delivery of the gleaning strand of the Closing Loops project within budget and on time, including progress tracking and reporting where required.
- Develop a database of seasonal gluts and key contacts to support the efficient coordination and re-distribution of surplus food to those who can use it.
- Co-ordinate the recruitment and management of gleaning volunteers and trainees.
- Work with the Eggcup team to secure ongoing and match funding for the scheme beyond the end of this contract to support it in scaling out and developing ventures wh