16/02/2026
Sharing the news that we are closing the pantry. We thank everyone for their support over the six years we have operated. See below for some more context. Thank you to everyone who has supported the pantry over the years.
Kensington Neighbourhood House has made the difficult decision to close our community Food Pantry.
The Pantry was established in response to immediate need during the Covid pandemic of 2020, and we are grateful to the community members, donors and volunteers who have supported it since then.
However, we need to ensure the work of our neighbourhood house remains focused, sustainable and aligned with our core purpose. Kensington Neighbourhood House is a community development organisation. Our primary role is to build connections, community participation, skills and wellbeing through programs, activities and shared spaces, rather than to deliver emergency relief services.
Over time, the cost of sourcing and collecting food, along with the significant staff time required to manage the Pantry, has outweighed its overall benefit.
Food insecurity is not going away, but our small Pantry is not an equitable or efficient way to address this problem. Some people get lucky and take armfuls of supplies, others are faced with bare shelves. There are other, fairer, options for food relief in our area and we will be referring people to those.
For KNH, continuing the Pantry would limit our capacity to deliver the community-building work that sits at the heart of what we do and that supports long-term outcomes for our neighbourhood.
This decision was not made lightly. We remain committed to supporting our community and will continue to focus our resources on inclusive programs, learning opportunities and social connection.
We continue to run our free lunch program weekly on Thursdays. Community members can get a filling hot meal at 94 Ormond St (Kensington public housing high rise) served at 12pm.
We also have information about local food relief services that are specifically funded and equipped to provide ongoing support. Please chat to us at any time about your food needs by coming into the House.
