Level’s Best allotments more accessible thanks to generous funding from ACT

Young people with severe learning disabilities, who are supported by Level Best Enterprises, can now access the charity’s allotments for longer periods thanks to generous funding from Anglian Community Trust.

ACT has awarded £1,799 to Level Best Enterprises, to purchase a new compost loo toilet for its allotments in Colchester, where they produce fruit and veg to make food that is sold at their new base in the city centre.

The young people had not been able to use the allotments for long periods of time due to there not being any accessible toilets on site. It also would have been too expensive to install a normal toilet at the allotments.

This new grant from ACT has made it possible for these young people to start work on the allotments all year round, safe in the knowledge they can use the toilet when they need it.

They will now be able to produce food on a more regular basis, for people to enjoy in their new centre, which they opened on St John’s street, Colchester, in 2023.

Alison Ling, the manager of Level Best Enterprises, said the new centre has been very well received by the local community since it opened last year.

“We are so delighted to have opened the new centre, after being in the planning for 11 years. So far, we have experienced a nice steady stream of customers. Up until now, the most popular meal has been English Breakfast tea and cake. We’ve also received lots of interest from organisations wanting to order our buffets.

“Our previous premises was down a back street, and although we had regular customers, it was time to put ourselves out there in a more visible building in the city, so that we could develop more relationships with other local organisations.

“We are very keen for the public to learn about the special talents that our trainees have, such as their art work, music production and cooking talent. We want the public to see what they can do and we would also like to change perceptions about how many positive ways they can contribute to our community.  

“We want them to be seen and appreciated. We have never put ourselves out there to say: ‘Here we are, working with people with learning disabilities.’ Instead, we say: ‘Here we are. We are a café. We are a gallery. We are an arts studio base. Come in and join us.’ We want people to feel like we are all together in this space, regardless of our abilities or disabilities. We want it to feel like a very welcoming place for everyone.”

The success of the new centre will also inspire further success with the allotment, knowing that more people than ever will be keen to taste the ingredients the trainees will grow in the future.

Ling added that the trainees take so much pleasure in producing the food, as well as all the other activities they are involved with too.

“They love it. It gives them value in what they are doing. It also provides them with a chance to create new friendships, develop independence, gain confidence and learn transferrable skills they can take home. They can bring the food from the allotment into a big kitchen and create food out of it to share with others, or eat it in private.

“The compost loo has been a game changer for us with the allotment because without it, we were limited with how long we could spend down there. Plus, it prevented some trainees from accessing it because some of them needed to use a toilet quickly, otherwise they could not be able to attend the sessions. We can now also use the allotments for whole days in the summer.”

Over the next year, Level Best intends to help all the trainees to feel settled in the new centre and then consider additional external training opportunities they can take part in. 2024 is looking very promising for Level Best.