29/05/2025
On 10th May, Community Roots held a launch event for the Big Shed, a versatile, multi-purpose space designed to support their current activities and enable future expansion within the local community.
Located at the Mount Pleasant Ecopark just outside Porthtowan, Community Roots produce low-impact, affordable, healthy food for and with the community, offering volunteering and learning opportunities and hosting activities and events.
The Big Shed will serve several key functions:
- A professional-standard kitchen for preparing food using surplus produce.
- A flexible open space for training sessions, educational programs, and community events.
- An indoor, all-weather workspace for volunteers to take breaks and carry out garden-related tasks.
- A dark, insulated, ventilated storage area to store produce for their veg bags.
The Big Shed was funded with £524,477 from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund through the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Good Growth Programme.
- Matty, Manda, Nicky & Antonia from Community Roots cut the ribbon, officially opening the Big Shed.
2. The design of the Big Shed incorporates solar panels on the roof, to keep energy costs low through renewable energy generation.
3. The new professional-standard kitchen will enable Community Roots to diversify their income stream with a space that can be rented to local food start-ups and small businesses, as well as being used for cooking courses and food education.
4. The Big Shed provides an ideal space for volunteers to carry out garden jobs which can be done indoors and sitting down (e.g. seed sowing, transplanting and taking cuttings).
5. A look inside one of the polytunnels, part of the productive, no-dig, organic market garden.
6. Produce grown on the one acre site is used for affordable, seasonal weekly vegetable bags.
You can find more details about Community Roots and the funding they received for the Big Shed here.