COVID -19 Community response: Grocery response NDG

This tool will guide you through the steps you need to take to set up a grocery ordering project and link you directly to the tools that you need each step of the way. Realizing that the current situation is changing on a day to day basis, we encourage you to adapt the tools not only to your project, but to the reality of the moment.

With the organigram, you can easily identify the different roles and responsibilities to be assumed and allocated.

  • 1

    Food security (FS) committee of

    Identify the community partners involved in the food security committee of your sector.

    Outline of the relationship between the Food Security committee and the Food Security Steering-Committee – it is possible that there is no distinction in your sector, depending on the number of stakeholders.

  • 2

    Steering committee

    Name the partners identified as being on the project’s steering committee.

    In order to facilitate monitoring and workload, a steering committee was created. The responsibility of this committee is the implementation and management of the project. This includes:

    • Drafting of the project
    •  Grant/funding applications
    •  Hiring a Project Manager
    •  Support and supervision of the Project Manager in the implementation of the project
    •  Support to the team for the realization of the project
    •  Adjustments to the project (activities, hiring, search for funding), according to the reality of the situation and the needs reported by the Project Manager
    •  Report to the Food Security sub-committee

    2

  • 3

    Project Coordinator

    See job description

    Under the immediate supervision of the steering committee, the Project Coordinator is responsible for carrying out the project and achieving the objectives.

Step 1

Organize a Steering Committee
This is key to lightening the workload for the partners involved, all the while allowing for a quick response and turn around time for changes as the situation evolves. The Steering Committee should include key community partners in food security and services to seniors. Can include CIUSSS Community Organizer of your CLSC, if available.

  • Secure telephone line for messages: You will want one specific phone line for clients to call and leave messages. This will help to centralize the project.
  • Secure funding to pay for Project Coordinator: As the situation evolves, people who are currently available for volunteer work may not be available in 2 weeks or 2 months. For this reason, and the fact that the role of coordination is a high level of responsibility, you will need to hire a Coordinator [Job Description]. This person would have the responsibility of the day-to-day operations of the project and is the link between the project and the Steering Committee.

Step 2

Get commitment from local grocers
Establishing a relationship with a local grocer will facilitate the flow of the project, from accessing the grocery store to collecting payment. Working with the grocer to:

  • Discuss cost of delivery
  • Determine how orders will be placed (ex: sent in a batch by email?)
  • Determine frequency and number of deliveries possible per week
  • Determine acceptable methods of payment
  • Discuss and outline hygiene protocol
  • Agree to a start date
  • Help getting your project focused and off the ground. It will be useful for a member of the Steering Committee or the Project Coordinator to regularly have contact with the grocer so as to troubleshoot and work together to adjust the service

Step 3

Hire

  • A Project Manager to help set up and oversee the functioning and administration of the project, and a Project Coordinator who would be responsible for managing volunteers and ensuring that the orders are placed with the store in a timely fashion.
  • Identify a back up Coordinator in case the person becomes ill or unable to work.

Step 4

Recruit Volunteers
Depending on the size of your project, you may want to identify (from within your organization and your partner organizations) volunteers for taking telephone orders. If recruiting new volunteers the government website www.jebenevole.ca is a good place to start. Live Concordia is also a good resource for student volunteers. https://www.concordia.ca/students/volunteering.html

Step 5

Train Volunteers – use the Training Manual available. 
The main steps in running an online volunteer training session are outlined here.

Step 6

Inform community and stakeholders about the project –  e-mail template to contact the local senior’s table and the local “Cellule de crise”.

Step 7

Launch the project –  inform key community partners, the CLSC, the Table de quartier and other senior resources.

  • Use and adapt the Tools available in the Outreach section.
  • Canva.com is a useful online resource to help you develop posters and other promotional tools.

Step 8

Manage, troubleshoot and adjust the project as the situation and needs of the community evolve.