The VC Gallery supports veterans and the wider Pembrokeshire community through art, cookery, gardening, forestry, and wellbeing activities designed to reduce loneliness and build confidence. With two buildings, gardens, an allotment, and a woodland site, the charity offers a rich mix of ways for people to connect, learn new skills, and feel supported.
Working with Egin
The group joined Egin in March 2024 to strengthen its climate resilience—particularly around seasonal growing, sustainable food, and improving the energy efficiency of its buildings.
Facilitator Jasmine Dale worked closely with the team to develop an Action Plan and coordinate a range of tailored support, including:
- An energy audit with Severn Wye Energy Agency
- Peer mentoring from Corinne Cariad to make cookery sessions more sustainable
- Evaluation support from Mike Corcorran of Co Pro
Jasmine also shared community-growing resources, recommended useful webinars, and organised a visit to another charity with solar panels so the team could learn directly from their retrofit journey.
“The Egin support has been absolutely invaluable… pivotal in transitioning us from a wellbeing hub to one with environmental values at its core.” Steph Cross, Project Manager at VC Gallery
Harvest festival soup ingredients
From Ideas to Action
With newly strengthened direction and support from Egin, the VC Gallery successfully secured the PAVS Garden to Plate grant in 2024. This funding expanded their capacity to grow, cook, and share healthy meals together. From there, they began developing a long-term sustainable food plan with mentor Corinne, embedding new processes into their operations.
In 2025, their momentum continued. They secured Awards for All funding to launch Creative Kitchen in July, employing Corinne as Creative Kitchen Coordinator. Under her guidance, activities now include gardening skills, cooking with local produce, using community surplus food, and seasonal workshops on pickling and preserving.
Kitchen crew making lunch
Community Impact
The Creative Kitchen project now provides pay-what-you-can lunches for around 100 people every week, supported by nearly 30 volunteers who collect surplus food, grow vegetables, prepare meals, serve guests, and deliver lunches to housebound residents.
The team uses tools such as Go for Zero and Food Diverse to track reductions in food waste and highlight sustainable food behaviours. The impact is clear: not only is the project reducing waste and championing climate-friendly living, it is also improving wellbeing for countless participants—many of whom live with trauma or financial pressures—through nutritious food, new skills, and a growing sense of belonging.
Cooking curry for a community lunch and learning to preserve produce
Energy Savings & Retrofit Success
Egin’s energy audit played a pivotal role in helping the VC Gallery secure £25,000 from the Principality Building Society Retrofit Fund. This supported installation of solar PV, batteries, an inverter, and partial double glazing at the Pembroke Dock building.
Further support from National Grid, Port of Milford Haven, and the Sustainable Development Fund enabled more double glazing, LED lighting, and an EV charge point—each recommended in the audit.
These retrofit improvements have significantly reduced the charity’s energy costs, freeing up more funding for frontline community work.
Sharing & Looking to the future…
VC Gallery now actively shares its sustainability journey across its networks to inspire wider climate-aware action. They also collaborate with regional partners including the Port of Milford Haven, the Bluestone Foundation, and Pembrokeshire Local Food Partnership.
Looking ahead, the charity hopes to develop a community café using garden produce and surplus food, creating new volunteering and training pathways. They also intend to apply for further retrofit funding in 2026 to complete the remaining energy-efficiency upgrades across both buildings.
“It’s a privilege to work with a project that genuinely benefits local people, driven by Steph’s hard work in putting eco-concerns at the heart of VC Gallery.” Jasmine Dale, the group’s Egin Facilitator
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