Food for thought
AS LITTLE AS £1 COULD MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE THIS YEAR
BRITAIN’S busiest foodbank is hoping to raised £50,000 to help some of the country’s neediest families this Christmas.
Managers at the centre in Newcastle’s West End are asking generous folk to give as much as they can to keep it going through the tough winter months.
The foodbank needs money for insurance, to pay delivery costs, and to make sure it has a variety of essentials to fill food parcels.
It is also able to buy surplus stock from factories at a fraction of the ordinary price, so it’s likely to be able to get much more food for the same amount of money you might spend on a few packets or tins to donate.
And it’s currently in more desperate need than ever.
This year, foodbank bosses say the most vulnerable people in the area are facing a “perfect storm” of problems, as cold days and dark nights mean greater need for lighting and electricity.
The pressures of Christmas will also be combined with the continued rollout of Universal Credit, which often means a six-week wait before payments begin.
Foodbank chief executive Michael Nixon explained.
He said: “During the year, we feed on average 1,000 people a week, but in the run-up to Christmas that number doubles.
“So instead of giving out about £10,000 worth of food, it’s more like £20,000 a week during December.
“There’s about 10 tonnes of food going out the door a week, which means we run our stock right down.
“Then, in January, February and March, donations go right down, and we are faced with having to buy in stock to keep us going until Easter.”
And while gifts of food are incredibly welcome, the charity says cash could be even more helpful.
For each £1 donated, Mr Nixon said he’s able to give away the equivalent of about £5 worth of food.
Michael said: “People in Newcastle are incredibly generous and they provide tremendous support to the foodbank in terms of food donated.
“But they don’t realise that we need money - our budget needs to be about £120,000 a year.” Elswick Councillor Dipu Ahad decided to start the Christmas Day funding drive to help the foodbank. He said: “The West End foodbank struggles in winter every year, and they need money, so we want to find 50,000 people to give just £1 each. “The foodbank has received a lot of support from Newcastle United fans, and we’re hoping they’ll help. “We’re going to be collecting outside the last home game of the season, and if every fan gave £1 each that would be a huge amount of money during the winter period, which really is a difficult period.” Money can be donated to the West End Foodbank online, at https://fundraise.charitycheckout.co.uk/newcastlewestend/cf/50k-by-Christmas-Day Foodbank volunteers will also be collecting cash and food donations outside Tesco in Kingston Park throughout the first week of December.
There’s about 10 tonnes of food going out the door a week, which means we run our stocks right down