Why giving back matters

Embedding yourself in the local community is about giving back in ways that matter, whether through headline initiatives or regular acts of support

It’s a busy Friday night at Fish & Chips at Weston Grove in Upton, Chester. The fryers are on, the prep is done, and customers are queuing. But tonight, 30 extra portions of chips are bubbling away – not for paying customers, but for the volunteers who have just finished a community litter pick organised by the shop. Owner Josette Foster decided the best way to thank them was with fresh chips and a few sausages on the side.

“It started at five o’clock, which on a Friday is our worst time, but we knew how many were coming so we could prep extra chips,” says Josette. “All ages came along and it created a great atmosphere.”

This wasn’t Weston Grove’s first attempt at tidying up the local area. A large orange bin, supplied by Chester Eco Communities, has sat outside the shop for two years, stocked with bags, gloves and litter pickers for anyone to use. But this was the first organised pick, a reminder, says Josette, that local shops don’t need to reinvent the wheel to make a difference. “Look around at the organisations already working in your area. If you can join forces it can cost very little to help.”

Bringing communities together

Josette’s point is echoed by fish and chip shops across the UK, where community involvement ranges from supplying charity raffles to tackling local crime risks. These businesses may be best known for their food, but they also play a role in bringing communities together.

“Anything to do with the community, we’re always glad to give something back,” says Kyri Karoulla, who has run Brockley’s Rock in Brockley, South east London, for 14 years. “Without the customers, we’re nothing. From the beginning they’ve supported us, so we appreciate and return that support.”

For Brockley’s Rock, that support has taken many forms. When the shop celebrated its 14th birthday, it marked the occasion with a customer appreciation day, offering half-price meals and donating the proceeds to three charities: Lewisham Food Bank, a local therapeutic garden project, and an environmental group in South Africa. The shop also sponsors the annual Brockley Max festival, a celebration of local artists.

Other initiatives directly address safety and the urban environment. Kyri recently persuaded 13 neighbouring businesses to help clean up a fly-tipped service road. “It wasn’t nice, there was all sorts of rubbish dumped there, even a dead horse once,” he says. “But we got together, raised funds and transformed it. Now it’s somewhere people walk safely at night. Small miracles happen when people come together.”

Kyri’s efforts haven’t gone unnoticed as Brockley’s Rock was presented with the Community Engagement Award at this year’s National Fish & Chip Awards.

Weekly donations

Not every contribution is grand in scale. In Stockport, Richard Noble of Town Street Fryer makes a weekly donation of a single bag of potatoes to Wellspring, a charity feeding local homeless people.

“One bag of potatoes isn’t a great deal to our business, but to the charity it really helps,” says Richard. “Most businesses do something at Christmas, then it gets ignored. I wanted to do something consistent throughout the year. I’d like to do more, but I run the shop myself with a few part-timers and it can be difficult to find the time and resources. This is quite easy and it’s something I can do every week.”

Richard also runs a “pay it forward” scheme where customers can pay for an extra pie with their order and it is passed to the local shelter. “It doesn’t take much effort, but it makes a difference. And if other chip shops see us doing it, maybe they’ll think to do the same,” he adds.

This steady, low-cost support is a common theme. Kelly Barnes, owner of Krispies, which has two takeaways, one in Exmouth and one in Exeter, says she never turns down a request for raffle vouchers. “Even if you put aside £100 a year and give out a few £20 vouchers, at least you’re doing something for your community,” she says.

Some chip shops take on roles far beyond food. Krispies recently invested £100 in a public bleed control kit, installed in their Isleworth Road branch in Exeter. The kits contain dressings and tourniquets to stem life-threatening bleeding before paramedics arrive.

The idea came after Kelly heard about a teenager fatally stabbed in Bristol, and later learned that the nearest kit to their shop was ten minutes away. “Ten minutes can make all the difference. It was a no-brainer,” she says.

Similarly, Harlees, a family-run chain across Dorset and Wiltshire, agreed to host a public defibrillator outside its Corfe Mullen shop at the request of the local council. “It costs us virtually nothing, just a bit of electricity, and it could save a life,” said owner Richard Long.

Business dimension

For many owners, supporting the community isn’t only altruism. Kelly admits there is a business dimension, adding: “It raises your profile. Let’s face it, marketing costs a lot of money so if you can utilise what you’re doing to help with your marketing, that’s what you should be doing. I don’t think you should do anything if you can’t quantify a return, and that return being that people are talking about you on Facebook or social media, saying thank you, or talking about it within the community. I think that’s really important.”

At the other end of the spectrum, some shops set ambitious fundraising goals. To celebrate Krispies’ 25th anniversary, the team aims to raise £25,000 in a single day by selling fish and chips for £5 across both its shops, with suppliers donating fish and potatoes and staff volunteering their labour. The money will go to Heads Up, a special educational needs referral for schools to use free of charge.

Kelly adds: “If it wasn’t for our community, we wouldn’t be where we are today. We decided that, as we’re 25 years old this year, why not try and raise £25,000 in a day and let a local charity benefit?”

Sometimes giving back isn’t about money or investment but the time, care and doing what’s right. The Fusco family, owners of several fish and chip restaurants and takeaways in and around Whitby, North Yorkshire, including Quayside and Royal Fisheries, recently swung into action when forest fires took hold of the Yorkshire Moors. They provided free food and drink to the fire brigade and the volunteers supporting them.

Co-owner Raymond Fusco said: “We knew friends, acquaintances and other locals who were doing everything they could to help stop the fire, and this was just our way of supporting them in a small way. We’re very proud to be part of such a close-knit community where people help one another, and it was a privilege to be able to help in some way.”

Even as some shops grow into small chains, the emphasis on community remains. Harlees, which now runs seven sites, gives space each year in its Swanage restaurant in Dorset to the Royal British Legion for a pop-up Poppy Appeal shop.

“We’ve been told it’s one of their best fundraising locations,” says owner Richard Long. “As we’ve grown, it’s even more important to keep that local connection.”

As relatively low-margin, high-footfall businesses, the importance of generating community goodwill should never be overlooked by fish and chip shop owners. As Josette from Fish & Chips at Weston Grove puts it: “We’re proud to be part of Chester and our local community. It’s about keeping the area tidy, educating people, and playing an active role in making things better. We sell fish and chips, yes, but we’re also part of something bigger.”