Dame Lucy Vincent, CEO and Founder of Food Behind Bars, was joined by Dames Cathy Sloman, Valentina Harris, Clare Donovan and Clare Marriage as part of our Dames Give Back initiative.
We spent two days with a group of women prisoners at HMP Send, in the Independent Substance Free Living Unit, where there’s a greater level of freedom than other parts of the prison. Day one was a frenzy of activity, cooking up a storm, ready for the women to invite friends and family in for a special extended visiting day the following day.
The visit was late morning, so we proposed a brunch menu, with shakshuka, frittata, fattoush salad, muffins, granola, fruit compote, scrambled eggs, tofu scramble, pancakes – an impressive menu and the women worked so hard to prepare as much as possible ahead of this special visit. Day two we left the women to prepare to welcome their guests, while we moved to the prison kitchen to get everything cooked and ready to present to the assembled company.
We had wonderful feedback for the women about the food, the opportunity to work with a team of chefs and the chance to enhance their kitchen skills and repertoire.