Last
Saturday Stephen Metcalfe, local MP for South Basildon and East Thurrock, lent
his support to the Whole and Hearty Community Cooking Competition run by the
‘Choices Family Support Service’ at the Basildon Upper Academy in Pitsea.
Choices
Family Support Service aim to enable positive changes for local families by
empowering and inspiring individuals and families to move forward with the help
of their range of services which include counselling, family support,
advocacy, parenting courses and forward referrals.
The
cooking competition, which is hoped will become an annual event, saw people
from across community come together to show off their culinary skills.
Contestants were allowed to create a dish of their choosing to be judged a
number of community leaders.
The
competition was won by 13 year old Max Houghton from Pitsea, whose dishes
‘wowed’ the community and fellow competitors alike, including the Bowers and
Pitsea Football Team who called into the Academy when their match became a
victim of the un-seasonal weather.
Mr
Metcalfe commented: “I am so glad to have been invited to this great event. The
standard of cooking was fantastic – certainly better than anything I could have
rustled up! My congratulations go to all those who entered, and my thanks to
all those who organised this event.”
Organiser
Susanna Caira-Neeson, speaking on behalf of Choices Family Support Service said
after the prize-giving: “We would like to thank those members of our community
who ventured out in spite of the bad weather to support the event. We would
also like to thank the staff and governors of the Basildon Academy for their
continued support of our work.”
Mr
Metcalfe added: “Choices Family Support Service is a brilliant organisation
working tirelessly to support families in the local community. If you would
like to find out more about them, please visit: http://www.choicesfamily.co.uk.”
