Food Hub Van Driver, Critical Support
Critical Support
Love life behind the wheel? Keen to help your community tackle the very real problems of food poverty and food wastage? Critical Support is looking an experienced van driver to use our electric van or their personal vehicle to collect large food donations which we redistribute to over 25 local charities. To successfully apply you must be over 21 years old and have held a license for a minimum of 1 year. Please note that the role involves medium - heavy lifting.
Critical Support (formerly Critical NHS) was founded in 2020 during the Covid-19 crisis as a spontaneous initiative to bring food to exhausted NHS workers during lockdown. Since then the organisation has expanded, in association with The Felix Project, Fareshare, City Harvest and Hovis, to take a local lead in redirecting surplus food to the vulnerable and those facing financial hardship across South London. In doing so, we work with more than 25 organisations confronting the devastating effects of poverty, war, homelessness and domestic violence, to reach over 10,000 people with approximately 4.5 tonnes of fresh and ambient food, clothing and toiletries every week. The weekly food we distribute is the equivalent of 35,000 - 40,000 meals. The successful candidate will be a careful, experienced driver with excellent communication skills, work ethic and timekeeping, with sufficient fitness to be able to collect and load/unload deliveries. • Collecting, loading and quality checking donations from City Harvest, The Felix Project and Hovis • Delivering and unloading food to Critical Support charity partners • Checking delivery notes and ensuring orders reach the right locations • Filling out paperwork to ensure traceability for all incoming and outgoing food from our Hub • Being the friendly face of Critical Support to the public and our partners This is a part-time role, ideal for someone with flexible availability. Applicants must be at least 21 years old (for insurance reasons), have held a clean licence for at least a year, and be comfortable using Sat Nav to navigate south London in a large electric van. Car drivers with their own vehicles are similarly welcome to apply to help us make smaller local collections and deliveries on an ad hoc basis.
Community Work,Environmental,Support Work,Volunteer Management
UK Driving Licence
• Must be at least 21 years of age and have held a licence for at least a year • Ability to comfortably drive a large electric van using a Sat Nav to navigate • Ability to safely load and unload medium – heavy goods from vehicles • Pump truck and warehouse experience/fork lift license desirable but not essential
Suitable for anyone with a passion for people, community outreach and reducing food wastage, the successful applicant will gain invaluable insight into the workings of a food charity supply chain. You will meet and collaborate with a diverse cross-section of people from across the South London community, representing charities tackling everything from homelessness to domestic violence. You will have the opportunity to use your individual skills in areas of personal interest, from administration to social media and website maintenance and design. You will be part of a friendly, dynamic team giving their spare time to make a real, demonstrable difference to the needy and vulnerable in South London.
We ask for a weekly commitment of 4 - 5 hours for van drivers (but can be flexible). Car drivers are welcome to apply on an ad hoc basis for 2 - 3 hours weekly help. The Food Hub Driver slots we are looking to fill are: • Mondays (10.00 am – 2.00 pm (van collection/delivery) & 2.00 pm – 5.00 pm (van/car collection/delivery)) • Tuesdays (7.00 am – 11.00 am van collection/delivery) • Fridays (7.00 am – 11.00 am van collection/delivery)
CR4 4NQ
Unit 4, Capital Business Estate, 24 Willow Lane, Mitcham
The Critical Support Hub on Willow Lane is a 5 minute walk from Mitcham Junction Station, which is serviced by both Thameslink and Southern trains, as well as the 127 Bus from Tooting. Please note that the Critical Support van is kept in Furzedown, near Streatham. You would be picking up donations from: • City Harvest, Unit 8, Acton Park Industrial Estate, W3 7QE • Felix Project, Unit 3 - 5, Deptford Trading Estate, Blackhorse Road, London, SE8 5HY • Collected food would be delivered to Critical Support, Capital Business Estate, Unit 4, Willow Lane, London, CR4 4NQ
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