Free meals for children over the school holidays thanks to Newbury TikTok star MealsWithMax

A café in Newbury town centre is offering free lunches for children over the summer holidays, with funding coming from customers paying it forward.

TikTok star Max McCann opened McCann’s Coffee Shop in May, with a budget of just £300.

Leveraging his fame with the account @mealswithmax, he managed to launch the Kennet Shopping centre project to provide a community-minded venue that encourages customers who can to pay a little extra to ensure those who can’t afford a coffee can do so.

It is this ethos that is powering his school holiday initiative.

Parents struggling with the cost of living, particularly those whose children benefit from free school meals during term-time, are invited to go over and enjoy a free lunch and take part in free weekly entertainment.

Mr McCann applied to his 2.1 million followers to help fund the initiative, which launched last Friday with a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party, provided by Jolly Pop Entertainment.

“There was lots of singing, dancing pictures and all sorts,” Mr McCann said.

“We gave out just over 40 free lunches too.

“Across the whole of the UK there are millions of people that are struggling to make ends meet, parents are working two jobs and struggling to put food on the table.

“We are trying to take away a bit of that stress, pressure and financial burden through our pay-it-forward initiative.”

Parents are grateful for the support, Mr McCann said.

“They think it’s an amazing idea. We have had really, really positive comments from parents and those that don’t necessarily need the free lunches. They are helping us by contributing the funds that enable us to do this.”

It’s been three months since the café opened, and Mr McCann said he was surprised and delighted with how the initiative has been received.

“When we moved in, it was just an empty shell of a retail unit with nothing in there,” he said. “We created a coffee shop in 30 days spending just £300, a massive challenge in itself.

“The coffee shop has essentially been filled by the community for the community and everything we do is about supporting people locally.”

Mr McCann says he had been struggling with his mental health, even when he had a following of around two million people on social media channels, but realising the purpose of life is having a life of purpose changed his view.

“We had that spray painted on the wall in the coffee shop,” he said.

“When I was younger, me and my family relied on food banks and we struggled quite badly from a financial perspective.

“What I want to try and do is help people going through the same as what me and my family did. That is why we wanted to do free lunches.”

The café isn’t just for families.

“There are many regulars that are elderly and they just come in for a chat,” Mr McCann said. “It has a positive impact on their life and their mental wellbeing.

“We also have a jobs board in our coffee shop where people can, if they are looking for work, write the sort of role they are looking for. Anyone who is hiring locally can get in touch with a member of the team and we can try and help them get into work.

“It’s been successful, we’ve had a couple of placements from that which has been great.”

Other projects Mr McCann hopes to bring to the café is a visit from a debt advisor and safety advice from a member of the fire service.

He added: “Whether you want a coffee or some food, or if you want to support the community, you are welcome to pop in and pay it forward or, if you are struggling to make ends meet, we will do whatever we can to help.”

Visit https://mccanns.org.uk/ for more information or to make a donation.