In 2025, Nourish Scotland started a community meals knowledge exchange programme. This programme aimed to review what ‘good practice’ looks like for community meals and gather intelligence on the current provision of these meals across Scotland. Crucial to doing this work well was getting a good cross section of meals involved – those with different prices, approaches and, importantly, in different geographical areas/communities. For this reason, we were keen to engage Kyle of Sutherland’s Community Café , given its unique remote location – in comparison to Edinburgh for example where there the landscape of food provision looks very different. We planned to facilitate exchange visits between the meals so that learning could happen between them.

Given the distance to Kyle of Sutherland, we were unsure whether an in person would be possible. This funding enabled the Nourish members of the programme to visit Kyle of Sutherland. It meant we were able to experience, review and properly reflect on the meal. This informed key learnings about the differences in community meal provision across Scotland. For example, sourcing looked very different here than it did for a community meal in Glasgow – as did the menu and customer base. What we found about the current state of community meal provision is that it is increasing, but that it’s not always clear when, where, who is running the meals. For meals that means it’s difficult to share learnings and for customers it means it’s not always clear when they can/can’t go to a community meal.

This work has helped to shed light on this invisible network. In doing so, it will help policymakers understand where community meals fit into the current landscape of food provision as well as inform expectations and help set directions for this type of provision. There will be a report produced in the coming months that will detail the main findings.

Learning Outcomes

• Facilitated key relationships between community meal providers across Scotland
• Shared and built on key learnings around payment, customers, dining experience and funding models
• Developed findings around what good practice means for community meal provision

"We know that community meals are a part of transitioning out of a food bank or ‘food aid’ model towards a more dignified way of eating together in community. Some community meals are more successful than others at escaping the stigma associated with food aid and food insecurity – and are therefore more accessible to a wider range of people, not just those in most acute financial crisis. In addition, research indicates that two thirds of people who need help with food are not getting it, in part because of the stigma associated with food aid. Community meals, if done right, could provide part of a solution to some of these issues in the medium term."