We are Cally Community Plan

Mubanga

There’s a lot going on in the Cally, including through the council’s We are Cally project. The council has been listening to the ideas local people have to make the area an even better place. Their ambitions have been captured in a set of agreed actions to be taken by local organisations, residents and the council in the We are Cally Community Plan.

We spoke to local resident Mubanga Kasonde who volunteers at the Copenhagen Food Bank.

Hi Mubanga, can you tell us a little about yourself? 

I’ve lived in Barnsbury since 2009 but I was living in Islington before as well.

I’m an independent trade finance advisor with Africa based companies. For example, we help African governments to import fertilizer and they distribute the food to their communities.

What do you do? 

I do a lot of volunteering. During the height of the pandemic I was running errands like doing the shopping for vulnerable people, doing welfare checks, popping round to see how people were.

I also volunteer with the Food Bank at Copenhagen Street. They’ve been running for 3 years now. A lot of volunteers were shielding but we’ve managed to keep things going because more people have volunteered.

In the first week we were delivering to about 10 households, and now it’s about 110 families.

Our first Covid babies were born in October 2021. We always try to make a real fuss and deliver to the mums until they can come along themselves. It’s such a joy to see the babies!

For the kids, at Christmas we see a lot more donations. This was the first Eid we have celebrated and the local mosques donated party bags.

Most of the people we support are older and live on their own with mental health issues but over the pandemic we have seen a huge increase in the numbers of families coming to us.

How are you playing a role in the Cally Plan? 

We’re really pleased to be contributing to the We Are Cally Plan. Our work is important to vulnerable families and individuals and helping them is part of what the plan is about.

If people live in the Cally and want to be part of the Copenhagen Street Food Bank they are welcome to contact us.

Read the We are Cally Community Plan

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