Food & Solidarity: What We Are (and What We're Not)
Food & Solidarity is a membership organization rooted in collective action. We exist to support people facing poverty, housing insecurity, and crisis... and to organize together to change the conditions that cause them.
We are not a food bank. Furthermore, we are not an advice service. And we are not a charity asking people to be grateful for what they are given.
What we are is a solidarity organization. We are here to create change, not for "business as usual".
That Means:
- People come together as members, not clients
- Support is mutual, not conditional
- Collective action matters more than individual coping strategies
We provide food parcels because people need to eat, but food is not the solution to poverty. Parcels are a starting point, not an endpoint. They help people survive while organizing and fighting together for change.
We don't separate "help" from politics. The conditions creating food insecurity, debt, and eviction are political decisions, and they require political responses.
We Also Set Boundaries
- We don't offer one-off crisis fixes without collective involvement
- We don't replace statutory services
- We don't pretend that advice alone can overcome structural poverty
Why We Exist
Food & Solidarity exists because too many systems are designed to manage poverty rather than end it. We organize so that people facing the sharpest edges of these systems in this country are not isolated, and so they have collective power to push back.
What Makes Us Different
Food banks provide emergency food but don't challenge the systems creating hunger.
Advice services help people navigate systems but can't change those systems.
Charities often reinforce a dynamic where people must be grateful recipients rather than agents of change.
Food & Solidarity combines practical support with organizing for structural change. Members support each other AND fight together to end the conditions causing poverty, housing insecurity, and crisis.
Become a Member
Join a movement that believes in solidarity, not charity. Where members organize together, support each other, and fight for systemic change in Newcastle and beyond.
Join Food & SolidarityFeatured
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Food & Solidarity?
Food & Solidarity is a membership organization rooted in collective action. Members support each other facing poverty, housing insecurity, and crisis while organizing together to change the conditions that cause them.
Is Food & Solidarity a food bank?
No. Food & Solidarity provides food parcels because people need to eat, but food is not the solution to poverty. Parcels are a starting point, not an endpoint. They help people survive while organizing and fighting together for change.
Is Food & Solidarity an advice service?
No. While members support each other with information and solidarity, Food & Solidarity doesn't replace statutory services and doesn't pretend that advice alone can overcome structural poverty.
What does 'solidarity, not charity' mean?
Solidarity means people come together as members, not clients. Support is mutual, not conditional. Collective action matters more than individual coping strategies. Food & Solidarity doesn't ask people to be grateful—members organize together for change.
