Bid to find permanent home for Driffield foodbank
Plans have been submitted to turn a former auction house into a base for the Driffield and Wolds
Plans have been submitted aiming to create a permanent home for a Driffield food bank and community space by converting a former auction house in the town.
Plans submitted to East Riding Council from the Love Driffield charity proposed converting the former Spicer Auction House to house Driffield and Wolds Food Bank under a five year lease.
The charity’s planning documents stated the “community hub”, behind 52/53 Market Place, would also offer space to hire one off for meetings and events and computers and internet access for locals.
The plans would see the auction house, built in the 1960s, as well as adjoining buildings including a warehouse built as a stable in 1830 converted.
The charity stated its food bank currently has eight volunteers and serves up to 120 households a month.
It currently opens to the public from 10am to 12.30pm Monday to Thursday but lacks a permanent base and was recently run from Driffield Showground’s Rix Pavilion.
Love Driffield’s plans stated basing the food bank at the Showground meant it was only accessible to most users by car while the proposed new site would be more “convenient”.
The converted building would feature storage space, two rooms for the food bank and available for daily or hourly hire, as well as an office for charity staff.
Plans stated: “The site is behind a row of shops on Market Place and adjacent to the Star Inn.
“In March 2021 the auction house moved to another facility in Goole, as they had outgrown their space.
“They are now able to run all aspects of their auction house from one site.
“This will provide a permanent home for the food bank and a community hub.
“Love Driffield is the only food bank in the local area serving Driffield and Wolds and benefits a number of households.
“The community space will also benefit a number of local groups who have limited space of their own, or no kitchen facilities for meetings and events.
“The development will largely retain the existing layout with the addition of a kitchen space in room two.
“The visible changes to the site are minimal, the main being an inclusion of a fire door to the rear of building one.
“The existing timber sliding doors will remain, so should the use of the building change again the fire doors can be easily removed and reinstated to its current appearance.”