New year cash and donations boost for foodbank

JUDITH TONNER

Airdrie foodbank started 2019 with a boost of both cash and donations.

The local good cause received £ 1000 from Ecclesiastical Insurance, after being chosen as one of the lucky charity recipients to benefit from their nationwide “12 days of Christmas” campaign.

Residents and staff at John Smith Court in Airdrie then handed over another bumper cheque, this time for £470 after collecting the sum at a special fundraiser.

Meanwhile, an impressive donation of more than 860 kilograms of vital food items was handed over by Thomas, Brian and John Mallon of Sancta Familia Media, with the items having been collected by parishioners at Holy Family Church in Mossend.

Foodbank manager David Findlay said: “These donations were a great boost to our funds and not only a great end to the year but an indication of a bright start to 2019.

“The donation from Ecclesiastical Insurance was part of their national campaign – the public go online to nominate a particular charity and Airdrie was the only foodbank to receive a donation.”

Airdrie foodbank is closed today but representatives say it will be “back to business as usual” on Friday.

The latest donations come as figures compiled by foodbank umbrella organisation the Trussell Trust show a 26 per cent rise in the number of people assisted by North Lanarkshire foodbanks during a six-month period last year compared to the equivalent in 2017.

Statistics show that a total of 2037 people were assisted in the local authority area between April and September, compared to 1617 who received three-day emergency supply parcels in the same period 12 months earlier.

The parcels assisted 1386 adults and 651 children; with the rise in parcels given out in North Lanarkshire proving to be nearly double the Scotland-wide increase of 14.6 per cent.

Alex Neil, the Airdrie MSP, called the increase in demand for foodbank assistance “truly heartbreaking”.

He blamed the rise on the introduction of Universal Credit, saying: “Foodbank providers have said the rise is largely due to the in-built minimum wait of five weeks for a first payment, with many more people forced to wait even longer.

“The fact that foodbank use is growing across Scotland is a clearly damning indictment of UK government cuts to welfare, and the botched roll- out of Universal Credit; it must be halted, so the fundamental flaws can be addressed.”

Community support Delighted Airdrie foodbank representative Robert Jack, left, is pictured accepting the fantastic £470 donation from generous residents of John Smith Court during his visit to the Airdrie sheltered housing facility

Helping out Holy Family Church items