The Deputy Lord Lieutenant of the West Midlands, John Wood, and Dan Lee, winner of MasterChef - The Professionals in 2021, joined Centre staff, volunteers, trustees and service users in celebrating the grand opening on July 3^rd.

Global’s Make Some Noise supports hundreds of small charities across the UK which face growing waiting lists and unprecedented demand for their services, whilst facing increased costs and a downturn in donations.

Robert Bruce, CEO at Dorothy Parkes Centre, said “We are so excited at the prospect of having a new community kitchen at our Centre. This is something we have needed for a number of years, and we are so grateful to Global’s Make Some Noise for awarding us the grant which will turn our dreams into a reality. It was incredible to receive more funding than we applied for, for us to get the high-quality spec kitchen. It will leave a legacy and a facility which many members of our local community can enjoy for many years to come.”

Robert was delighted with how many people turned out to celebrate the ribbon being cut on the kitchen area. He said "Initially it was invite only due to space but the word must have got out as we had over 60 people in attendance and it made for a really big celebration. It was great to share this moment with so many friends of the Centre and some special guests!”

"There were speeches and refreshments before Dan did the honour of officially opening the kitchen. Guests had a tour and were very complimentary about the kitchen."

Rob paid thanks to the contractor, Simon Pearce from Covenant Direct Limited, and kitchen provider Steelplan Kitchens Limited. He added: "The Project Manager of the contractor who has worked on the kitchen for the last eight weeks attended and gave a great speech about how impressed he was with us a ‘family’ for the community. We have the family cooking courses arranged for the summer and these places are filling up nicely."

The plan for the kitchen is to link it with the Centre’s award winning Community Allotment Plot and provide projects and support around food poverty, healthy eating, and reducing food waste. The first set of family cooking courses are booked for the summer with some adult courses to be scheduled in the autumn.

Suzanne Ryder-Richardson, Director of Global Goodness at Global, said: “It’s becoming increasingly hard for small charities to meet the rising demand for their services whilst struggling with higher bills. They are delivering vital projects which are a lifeline for so many.

"We’re thrilled that thanks to the generosity of the Global audiences and our partners we are able to help those charities, who are at the centre of communities right across the UK. But there are still so many of these amazing projects who are finding it difficult to continue, with some having to turn people away when they are reaching out for a lifeline.”