Curry house pledges to deliver 5,000 lunches to Northampton teaching staff

A curry house has donated hundreds of meals to two Northampton schools as part of its pledge to reward teachers working throughout the pandemic.

Staff from Saffron, in Castilian Street, delivered 300 portions of onion bhajis, chicken tikka masala and pilau rice to staff at Vernon Terrace Primary School and Weston Favell Academy on Thursday.

Owner Naz Islam said: “The town means so much to us and we will always do our bit to help our community here in Northampton.

“Teachers and school staff are doing an amazing job by putting the needs of our children first, giving them the routine and structure they need and allowing them to continue with their education despite everything that’s going on.

“Donating these lunches is the least we can do to say thank you. We want to deliver up to 5,000 lunches to school staff over the next few weeks so if you think the teachers at your school deserve a treat then get in touch with us at the restaurant.”

Kathryn Murphy, acting principal at Weston Favell Academy, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to have received this delivery from Saffron, in recognition of the hard work of teachers and support staff during the pandemic. This is truly appreciated.

“I am immensely proud of how our staff at Weston Favell Academy have gone above and beyond to support our pupils and wider community throughout this challenging time. We are very grateful for this generous donation from the restaurant, whose kindness highlights the caring spirit within our local community and echoes our values here at the academy.”

Saffron also donated more than 1,000 meals to doctors and nurses at Northampton General Hospital during the first wave of the pandemic and fed more than 100 families during the October half-term holiday in response to England footballer Marcus Rashford’s campaign to persuade Government to extend the free school meals scheme.

Mr Islam added: “Marcus Rashford has shone a light on an apparently hidden epidemic plaguing this country. No child should be going hungry in the UK in 2020 yet many families are living in food poverty and barely able to feed themselves.

“We will not stand by and let this happen here in Northampton.”

The half-price promotion for school staff and all frontline NHS and emergency services workers is available between Sunday and Thursday on all collections, with orders placed over the phone. Valid ID must be shown on collection.