Plea as food banks expect the busiest December yet
AS Christmas approaches food banks across Wales are preparing for what could be their busiest December yet.
The Trussell Trust has today released figures that show last December was the busiest month ever for food banks in the UK and it has already recorded an increase in the number of emergency parcels being handed out in 2019 compared to last year.
Across Wales, 154,243 emergency threeday parcels were handed out in December 2018 – an 11% increase compared with December 2017.
Out of these, 6,521 were for people who said they had children.
And while the charity is unable to record the number of individuals who access food banks or benefit from its parcels, it recorded a 17% increase in the number of parcels handed out from April to September 2019 when compared with the same period last year.
Emma Revie, The Trussell Trust’s chief executive, said: “Christmas is supposed to be a time of joy and celebration – but for too many people in Wales it’s becoming harder and harder to keep their heads above water.”
The county that saw the most food parcels handed out last December was Cardiff, where 1,550 food packages were distributed. This was followed by Carmarthenshire, at 1,224.
These figures follow the recent publication of State of Hunger – the most in-depth study into hunger and the drivers of food-bank use in the UK to date.
The research shows that the average weekly income of households who use food banks is just £50 after rent is paid.
As The Trussell Trust prepares to help a record number of people in crisis, it is asking the public to do two things.
The charity is asking the public to donate to their local food banks as soon as possible, and that in the run-up to the General Election, people are asking candidates on all sides to pledge to protect people from hunger by ensuring everyone has enough money for the basics.