WHERE’S OUR NEXT MEAL COMING FROM?

Thousands depending on foodbanks due to virus crisis

Almost 300 desperate families a week in East Kilbride have been reliant on lifeline foodbank parcels throughout lockdown.

That’s the shocking reality of the social and economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, which has left thousands wondering where their next meal is coming from.

Loaves and Fishes Foodbank told the News this week they have seen a 300 per cent rise in users from the same time last year.

And at the height of the pandemic, when lockdown restrictions were at their tightest, they were handing out over 250 food parcels a week.

Worryingly, 125 of those were vital supplies for children from birth up to 16-years of age.

Charity board member Kimm Curran told us this week: “The figures are staggering. This is like nothing I have ever experienced before.

“It has been one of the biggest challenges I think the charity has ever faced.”

Along with wife Cathie, poverty campaigner Denis Curran – who runs Loaves and Fishes – was forced to shield because of the virus.

So it was daughter-in-law Kimm who took the reins with a dedicated team of volunteers keeping the charity open throughout the ongoing emergency.

Social distancing restrictions meant that working practices were turned on their head, and panic buying at the start of the pandemic left the charity with difficulties in sourcing supplies as retailers and wholesalers placed limits on the amount of produce that could be bought at any one time.

But Kimm and her staff worked tirelessly to ensure that they could continue to help those most in need.

She added: “Apart from the two weeks where board members went into isolation to make sure we were all clear, our doors were open.

“We had to make sure everyone from volunteers to service users were safe and still get food to people, so we changed to a delivery service in the main.

“That meant those shielding, or who had health issues, either mental or physical, were still

getting parcels.”

Concerns have been raised by many about the impact of lockdown on people’s mental health, as well as the strain of losing a job because of the pandemic.

Kimm said poor mental health was more evident as a result of lockdown, adding that she had “never seen them so extreme” as what she sees now.

The charity board member added: “We saw families who didn’t know how they would feed their children on a daily basis.

“There are many vulnerable people scared to step foot outside their house and those who had never used a foodbank in their lives before, but were forced to turn to us because of a five or six week wait for Universal Credit after losing their jobs.

“We had elderly and vulnerable who couldn’t get on the supermarket lists turning to us, or people who should have been given ‘shielding boxes’ of essentials but weren’t on their GPs list.

“And there were people receiving shielding boxes that didn’t need them – we were eternally grateful to people who handed them in to us.

“It was these shielding boxes that meant we always had enough food to give to people.”

As well as continuing to help those in need now, the charity – based in Kelvin Industrial Estate – is already looking as to how they will cope amidst a second spike of the disease.

The “calm before the storm,” Kimm believes challenges lie ahead and insists foodbanks “should never have to be relied upon in a pandemic, no matter how unprecedented”.

Among the difficulties faced by the charity, a £10,000 cash windfall from the Scottish Welfare Fund has given them a much needed boost.

The money will be used to provide emergency parcels, as well as PPE packs to keep people safe, with new masks available on request thanks to Kimm’s seamstress friend.

Kimm thanked her volunteers saying she has “never seen a team work so hard in her life” and her trusty sidekick, Lesley Davidson, for all their support.

The charity has also received donations from local supermarkets including Lidl and Morrisons which have proved vital in keeping shelves stocked.