Peterborough restaurant boss who has donated thousands of meals to the vulnerable vows to continue supporting communities 

Zillur Hussain, founder of the Zi Foundation, has called on community heroes to help direct his foundation to those who need help in Peterborough.
Guests outside Tavan at the Zi Foundation thank you eveningGuests outside Tavan at the Zi Foundation thank you evening
Guests outside Tavan at the Zi Foundation thank you evening

The Zi Foundation is a family run foundation, set up five years ago, that offers support to vulnerable people.

A large amount of the foundation’s work is based in Peterborough, where Zilluh owns the Turkish-Moroccan restaurant Tavan in Lincoln Road, but they have also helped people as far a field as Latvia and Bulgaria with issues such as medical costs.

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When the Covid-19 pandemic hit in March, the foundation turned their attention to how they could help people in the city and began to donate meals to those in need.

The number of meals delivered is estimated to be over 17,000. At times of peak demand, Zillur was sending out around 140 meals in one trip, but the charity now sends out between 100 and 200 meals a week.

In order to coordinate the operation successfully, Zilluh has relied on help from community heroes across Peterborough. He has been aided by members of the Indian, Bulgarian, Czech, Polish, Lithuanian, Syrian and African communities, amongst others, and to thank them hosted a socially distanced gathering at his restaurant last Thursday (August 3).

The event was also attended by former Council Leader John Peach, Deputy Council Leader Wayne Fitzgerald and Peterborough MP Paul Bristow.

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Mr Bristow said: “We need to make sure the tremendous effort from all communities throughout Peterborough during the COVID pandemic continues. We proved we are one city and came together perhaps more impressively than any other place in the UK. It was an incredible achievement.

“The excellent Zi Foundation organised this small community event with local leaders to reaffirm their commitment to looking after our most vulnerable. I want to play my role as the city MP to coordinate efforts and show Peterborough is a caring city.”

Zilluh is now keen to continue working with all of the diverse communities across Peterborough to ensure that no one is left behind.

He said: “Our vision is to bring the community together, work with people and stand with them.

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“We are a city that has dealt well with Covid, a lot of businesses have offered their support and really helped out people in need.

“We are appealing for anyone in the community who has any problems to let us know.

“One of the things we are concerned about is a second wave. If there are people who are coming over to this country alone and have to quarantine but also need to get essentials, may be forced to go out and break the rules.

“My aim is for those people to alert us to their situation and we can send packages around to their home.

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“We are working closely with leaders in the community about this as they are the ones who know best where the support is needed.”

Away from Covid, the Zi Foundation is committed to offering a wide range of support to people. They have a 25 strong team of volunteers who are willing to offer both their time and personal expertise.

He added: “We have so many great volunteers who are professionals, such as lawyers or accountants, and willing to give out free advice.

“One example that stands out is a man who contacted us after being told by lawyers he contacted that he would have to wait a month to be advised on gaining custody of his children. We, however, were able to put him in touch with someone immediately.

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“I don’t know of any other organisations that are offering this range of support and I must thank those who have helped us achieve this. These are all of the volunteers, as well as my good friend Ishfaq Hussain, local MP Paul Bristow and Rodney Flowers, who has made a significant financial donation.”

The foundation is also progressing with plans to launch a new publication called ‘Zi Magazine’ in November. This will be a go to guide for help about services they can offer, as well as for community stories.

Anyone who would like to get in touch with the Zi Foundation can do so via email at [email protected].