Care provider launches new meal delivery service – 1 Oak Community Meals – for Sudbury area to fill void left by collapse of Bridge Project

Vulnerable people at risk of losing out on their meal deliveries in the wake of a charity’s closure have gained a lifeline, after another organisation stepped in to fill the void.

Acton-based 1 Oak Home Care has launched a new community interest company (CIC), which began delivering freshly-prepared meals for people in the Sudbury area on Monday.

The new venture, 1 Oak Community Meals, is supporting users who were previously served by The Bridge Project – the social enterprise that ceased operating on Friday, due to insurmountable financial difficulties.

The collapse of the charity, which had been running for 30 years, has created uncertainty for those who regularly used its services, with work ongoing to find alternative providers.

Angel Clark, managing director at 1 Oak Home Care, said they had received numerous calls from clients and members of the public, asking for help since The Bridge Project’s closure was announced.

She said the company had actually planned to launch its own meal delivery service back in 2020, but had to put this on the backburner after taking over the running of the Chilton Centre, in Sudbury.

“It’s something we wanted to do during lockdown, but then Age UK Suffolk went into administration and we took over the day centre, so all of our meals on wheels plans were put on hold,” Angel said.

“A lot of our clients were affected by The Bridge Project’s closure. We decided there’s a real need for freshly-cooked meals in the Sudbury area, so we thought let’s go for it.”

For its first week in operation, 1 Oak Community Meals has already taken on 15 ex-Bridge Project customers and is confident this figure will grow in the coming weeks.

The new CIC has also brought in the The Bridge Project’s former chef to help prepare the meals, to maintain continuity, with six people in total currently working to provide the service.

Angel said there was capacity to expand the deliveries to reach up to 80 people weekly, and it was prepared to add extra staff to help meet any rise in demand.

Having taken 1 Oak Community Meals from the conceptual stage to a fully-realised operation in just 11 days, she emphasised the main aim was to achieve a seamless transition.

“It has been an unsettling time for people,” she said. “There have been so many questions about what will happen.

“I think it’s just devastating. One lady who contacted us has been having her meals from The Bridge Project for years.

“It’s change, and we know change is unsettling for anybody, but especially those people for whom it has been a big part of their lives.

“We think it should be fairly seamless and we have included many of the same items on the menu.

“We have set up the service as a community interest company so we can invest more into the area.

“We’ve got our home care covering Sudbury and the surrounding area, but having this as a CIC means we can put profits back into the community.

“This is a ‘here-to-stay’ project and a long-term solution.”

To contact 1 Oak Home Care to inquire about the meal delivery service, call 01787 326555 or go to www.1oakcare.com.

Meanwhile, The Bridge Project announced prior to its closure that it had been in talks with another Suffolk-based meals-on-wheels service, to support affected customers.

A statement from the charity confirmed Aspect Living Foundation had agreed to take on many of its users.