The Healthy Plate
Food, Wellbeing and Life Skills for Young Carers #HelpUsHelpOthers
Dishes of Change
Who We're Are
Across Walsall and the wider West Midlands, many young people provide emotional, practical and physical support to family members — carrying responsibilities most of their peers never experience.
While demonstrating extraordinary resilience, caring responsibilities can significantly impact wellbeing, confidence, education and future opportunities.
Dishes of Change has been designed to address these hidden inequalities.
OUR FOCUS
Why This Matters
Invisible Responsibilities
Many young carers navigate adult responsibilities while managing school, friendships and their own emotional wellbeing.
Hidden Impact
Research shows higher levels of anxiety, stress and social isolation among young carers compared with their peers.
A Unique Opportunity
Many already manage food shopping and meal preparation — yet few receive structured support to do so sustainably.
Our Approach
Food is the vehicle.
Using food as a practical and engaging route into learning, the programme supports young carers to develop confidence, resilience, independence and wellbeing through LGK’s innovative Healthy Plate Model.
Food is not the outcome. Food is the vehicle through which young people develop the life skills, emotional resilience and self-belief needed to thrive.
01. Mental Health
Understanding emotions, managing stress and developing resilience.
02. Financial Management
Budgeting, meal planning, shopping skills and informed decision-making.
03. Looking After Yourself
Building confidence, self-worth, self-care practices and healthy boundaries.
04. Caring for Others
Developing empathy, communication skills and healthy caring relationships.
05. Eating Healthily
Practical cooking skills, nutrition and healthy eating habits.
Each workshop uses food as the entry point through which these wider life skills are explored and developed.
The Healthy Plate Model
At the centre of the programme sits LGK’s Healthy Plate Model, identifying five essential ingredients that help young carers thrive.
Delivery Model
The programme operates through school partnerships and community settings across Walsall. A dedicated Programme Lead delivers structured learning through a Mobile Food School — bringing education directly to young carers.
Practical Cooking
Hands-on cooking experiences combined with nutrition and healthy eating education.
Financial Capability
Budgeting, meal planning and informed decision-making skills.
Emotional Wellbeing
Peer learning, confidence-building activities and personal development.
Innovation: The Mobile Food School
Rather than expecting vulnerable young people to access services, the programme takes support directly to schools, communities and neighbourhoods.
The vehicle becomes both a learning environment and a visible symbol of opportunity, wellbeing and inclusion — removing barriers to participation and enabling LGK to engage young carers where they already feel safe and connected.
Expected Outcomes
By the end of the programme, participants will experience meaningful change across their personal, practical and emotional lives.
Emotional Wellbeing
Improved emotional wellbeing and stronger coping strategies.
Confidence & Self-Esteem
Increased confidence, self-esteem, independence and self-efficacy.
Practical Life Skills
Improved practical life skills and financial capability.
Connection & Optimism
Feel more connected to peers and more optimistic about their futures.
Long-Term Impact
Sustainable Infrastructure
The vehicle will provide a platform for future programmes supporting vulnerable young people, ensuring impact continues long after the initial grant period.
Our Ask from investors
By investing in Dishes of Change, young carers programme investors will support an innovative model that strengthens the agency, resilience and life chances of young carers for future generations.
Let's Talk
Join us in scaling our impact and nourishing the future of Birmingham’s local communities.