FRESH START Community Hub is taking signups now for the free new absolute beginners English class on Tuesdays 1 – 3pm starting on Tuesday 14th January.
To enrol or refer please contact Abigail@freshstartweb.org.uk
The team at Amazon’s Corporate Office and the Customer Service team in Edinburgh has joined forces with five other Amazon teams across Scotland to pack and donate household essential packs worth £30,000 to Edinburgh-based charity, Fresh Start.
Fresh Start is dedicated to helping individuals who have experienced homelessness transition smoothly into their new homes. Each year, the charity supports thousands of new tenants, ranging from families to single individuals, by providing Starter Packs filled with essential household items to help them establish a comfortable living environment.
To support this cause, the Amazon team in Edinburgh, along with colleagues from five additional sites across Scotland, packed over 450 Starter Packs at the fulfilment centre in Dunfermline. The donation of Starter Packs will support 475 households across Scotland. Members of each team met to visit the charity to deliver the packs, learn more about the charity’s work and express their appreciation to its staff and volunteers.
Speaking on the combined donation effort, Jamie Strain, General Manager at Amazon in Dunfermline, said: “It has been our pleasure to support Fresh Start in its mission to assist people moving into new homes.
“The enthusiasm shown by our colleagues in Dunfermline and across Scotland as they packed the Starter Packs was truly inspiring, and I am glad to work alongside teams who care so much about the communities around our Amazon buildings. Knowing that these essential items will help people start afresh and settle into their new homes is incredibly rewarding for all of us.”
The Starter Packs included a variety of household necessities such as winter clothing, kettles, toasters and cutlery, all aimed at helping people settle into their new homes with ease and comfort.
Alasdair Brown, an employee from Amazon in Dunfermline who helped pack the Start Packs, added: “It’s been great to team up with my colleagues from across Scotland to pack the Fresh Start Starter Packs, knowing that they will make a meaningful difference in the lives of those who need a boost getting back on their feet.
“Supporting our local communities is something I really take pride in, and I’m pleased to be encouraged to do so by my employer. Fresh Start deserves as much recognition as possible, so this was a great initiative to have been part of.”
During the visit to Fresh Start’s Community Hub and Warehouse premises in Edinburgh, Amazon team members had the opportunity to meet with Fresh Start staff and volunteers, learning more about the organisation’s impact in the community.
Darcey Joyce, Corporate and Community Fundraiser at Fresh Start, said: “Our Starter Packs are vital for helping people who have been homeless settle into a new home, as they provide them with the essentials they need to have the best new start.
“The dedication of the Amazon teams who packed and delivered these household essentials to us highlights their commitment to supporting our community and we couldn’t be more grateful for the support.
“Gifting essential household items to people transitioning from homelessness into tenancies across Edinburgh greatly reduces the risk of repeat homelessness and helps people feel a sense of community as they resettle.”
Amazon has several buildings in Scotland, including a fulfilment centre, delivery stations, an Amazon Fresh store and the Amazon Development Centre Scotland, situated in Edinburgh’s iconic Waverley Gate building.
Amazon employees from Dunfermline, Motherwell, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee formed the group offering financial and practical support to Fresh Start.
Community donations and employee volunteering are just two of the ways Amazon supports the communities where it operates. Amazon co-founded The Big House Multibank in Fife with former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown to support to families in need. The Multibank network has now donated more than 5 million surplus goods to over 500,000 families across Scotland, Wales, Greater Manchester, London, and Tees Valley.
Amazon has supported more than one million students across the UK with free STEM education programmes through Amazon Future Engineer and helps community organisations transport meals and other essentials to families in need through its pro bono logistics programme, Amazon Local Good.
Amazon partners with Comic Relief and is the official home of the charity’s iconic Red Nose. Together with its employees, customers, and partners, Amazon has raised over £4.8 million to fund projects that support people across the UK, and around the world.
SATURDAY 7th DECEMBER from 11am – 1pm
Please donate festive food items to Fresh Start!
Fresh Start support hundreds of families and individuals with festive food hampers for Christmas time so that everyone can enjoy a Happy Christmas 
If you can, please donate festive food items that will be distributed across Edinburgh in the run up to Christmas.
Fresh Start is open for donations Monday to Thursday 9am-4pm and Fridays 9am-1pm
INTERMEDIATE CLASS – Tuesday 9.30 – 11.30am
ABSOLUTE BEGINNERS – Tuesday 1 – 3pm
BEGINNERS CLASS – Thursday 10am – 12pm
SATURDAY NIGHT SUPPER and ENGLISH CLASSES
FRESH START are running our Saturday Night Supper cook at home programme again for anyone who wishes to learn cooking skills and may have already attended our classes.
These sessions build on the skills learned in class, feel free to share and to sign up by contacting cooking@freshstartweb.org.uk
We also have spaces in our English classes – Beginners and Intermediate, please contact me to sign up: abigail@freshstartweb.org.uk
Please share with your networks!
Efforts to tackle poverty in Edinburgh have put almost £24 million into the pockets of residents who need it most, according to a report published yesterday (Friday 11 October).
Edinburgh’s latest End Poverty Annual Progress report looks at how partners are responding to the recommendations put to the city by the Edinburgh Poverty Commission in 2020.
Around 80,000 people in Edinburgh are currently living in poverty, including 20% of all children.
The report reveal grants and welfare advice has increased by 20% over the last year, helping residents to access millions of pounds in unclaimed benefits, and that positive collaboration between the council and partners has also led to:
Marking this year’s findings, shared during Challenge Poverty Week 2024, the Council Leader Cammy Day made a visit to Fresh Start in West Pilton.
One of the many partners involved in helping to tackle poverty in Edinburgh, Fresh Start is a charity which offers a food pantry and helps people who have been homeless with essential supplies.
The full report will be considered by members of the Policy and Sustainability Committee when it meets on Tuesday 22 October.
Council Leader Cammy Day said: “We have shown that when we come together as a city, we can make a real difference. And this difference really can be life changing.
“We’ve put more money directly into the pockets of those people who need it most this year, also helping 5,000 people into work or learning. We’ve retained Edinburgh’s 95% record for positive destinations for school leavers, and as part of our Housing Emergency we’ve been able to build more new Council homes this year than the previous two years combined.
“The Council’s budget decision to allocate an additional £500,000 investment in actions to address poverty this year is also helping to increase support to foodbanks and other frontline services tackling poverty.
“Yet, for all our combined efforts, poverty remains one of the biggest challenges of our times. There are 80,000 people in our city who are living on incomes below the poverty threshold, and they are hurtling towards another winter of money worries.
“Without additional urgent action, one in five children in this city – Scotland’s most affluent city – will continue to grow up in poverty. So, we have clear asks to Scottish and UK Governments on the support we need to meet the poverty targets we have set together. We also know there is much more we can do by working with local partners, so we’ll work on a refreshed partnership led programme to improve the impact of our work to prevent destitution.
“Next year will mark the mid-point between the publication of the Edinburgh Poverty Commission’s final report and our city’s target to end poverty by 2030. We must be more motivated than ever to take all steps necessary to give the very best future we can for Edinburgh’s children and young people.”
Fanette Genais, Fundraising Manager for Fresh Start, said: “Our food pantry and shop allows people to choose items they need and our starter packs help people who have been homeless and who don’t have many belongings to set up a new life, from white goods to bedding.
“I’m really pleased to see the new Regenerative Futures Fund set up and I’m looking forward to seeing it tackle poverty in our city.”
There will be FREE bike repair sessions at Fresh Start Garden – Inchgarvie Court every Wednesday in July run by Dr Bike.
Weds 3, 10, 17, 24 July from 2.00-4.30pm
Pllease spread the word!
EVERY TUESDAY from 12.30 – 2pm at FRESH START
FRESH START’s painting and decorating service has gone through some recent changes and we would like to launch our new Fresh Rooms service! 
Fresh Rooms replaces the formerly named Hit Squad painting and decorating service and we are also delighted to welcome our new Volunteer Coordinator, Caitlin to the team. Caitlin has hit the ground running, has a great connection with service users and is pictured here, taking part in her first practical Fresh Rooms session!
Fresh Rooms offers painting and decorating support to people moving on from homelessness when they move into their new tenancy. Tenants are given the choice of what colour they would like their new home painted and a volunteer lead team come along and work their magic.
If you are working with someone that can benefit from this service, or would like to volunteer, either as an individual or as a corporate volunteering day please get in touch 
