An update from our table

After eight years of bringing people together through food, The Welcome Table has closed its commercial catering operations and Chef Training program.

Since 2018, first as House of Welcome Catering and more recently as The Welcome Table, we've used food to create opportunities for people seeking asylum and refugees to build skills, confidence, connections and pathways towards employment.

What began with a borrowed kitchen, a Head Chef and four client cooks grew into something we're incredibly proud of. Over eight years, we trained 24 people, supported participants into employment, delivered thousands of catering orders and created opportunities for people to share their skills, cultures and stories with the wider community.

Over the past 18 months, we made a concerted effort to build a stronger and more sustainable future for The Welcome Table. With the support of our funders and partners, we developed a three-year business plan and Social Impact Framework, strengthened our Chef Training model, refreshed our brand and market offer, built new partnerships and explored opportunities to grow revenue and reduce costs.

Ultimately, the commercial catering model continued to require a level of ongoing investment that was not sustainable for House of Welcome, particularly given the support needed to deliver meaningful outcomes for trainees.

After careful review by the management team, the Board made the extremely difficult decision to conclude catering and Chef Training in July 2026. This came at a particularly challenging time for the model, with rising food and operating costs, customers facing tighter budgets, and limited funding available to meet the additional costs involved in delivering the intensive support that is central to a Work-Integrated Social Enterprise.

While this marks the end of an important chapter, it doesn't diminish what was achieved. The Welcome Table has given us valuable insight into what it takes to create meaningful pathways towards employment for people seeking asylum and refugees, including the importance of paid workplace experience, practical support, confidence and connection alongside technical training.

It has also strengthened House of Welcome. The capability, partnerships and understanding built through The Welcome Table will remain with the organisation, alongside what we've learned about the power of food and shared experiences to create connection, belonging and opportunity.

Most importantly, none of this would have been possible without the people who made The Welcome Table what it became.

Our trainees and graduates who brought their skills, cultures, generosity and determination into our kitchen. Our chefs and team who taught, supported, cooked, delivered and cared. Our customers, councils, suppliers and supporters who chose to work alongside us. And our funders and partners, whose belief and investment gave us the opportunity to support people, strengthen the program, test new approaches and learn along the way.

Together, you helped demonstrate what can happen when people seeking asylum and refugees are given genuine opportunities to contribute their skills, experience and culture.

That commitment to creating opportunity, dignity and belonging continues across the work of House of Welcome.

Thank you for taking a seat at our table.