Find all the latest news and events from the foodbank. If you are a member of the press and would like to cover any of our stories please contact us, we'd be happy to work with you.
News and events
Donations ..
You can now make online donations to help with our costs using MyDonate, the BT service provided free to the voluntary sector, and also via Virgin Money Giving. You can Gift Aid your donations too.
Sponsored Events ..
Also, if you are running or taking part in any other fund raising venture then you can set up a fund raising page at either website for all your sponsorship efforts.
We're looking for volunteers to help run the foodbank
We have cover for most of the days but still need further help. If you could spare some time then do please get in touch by calling our manager Mark on 01708 386323
We anticipate acquiring more customers during January and February so extra help to fill the gaps in our rota would be appreciated.
Foodbanks are opening at an unprecedented rate to meet the high demand for emergency food aid: in 2011-12 The Trussell Trust has launched a new foodbank every week, launching its 200th UK foodbank this week. We've also launched our first international foodbank in Sofia, Bulgaria.
128,000 people nationwide have received emergency food handouts from The Trussell Trust's UK foodbanks in the last 12 months, 100% more than last year. Most foodbank recipients are not homeless; they are low-income working families who hit crisis, people who have been made redundant or people experiencing benefits delays. We are excited that more and more churches and communities across the UK are seeing the need on their doorsteps and working with us to launch more foodbanks.
Could your local church launch a foodbank?
You're more likely to know him for his roles in Love Actually and Pirates of the Caribbean rather than combatting poverty, but actor Bill Nighy is a keen campaigner on social justice. As one of the voices of the Robin Hood Tax campaign, Bill wanted to find out more about UK poverty and Oxfam suggested that he visit a Trussell Trust foodbank!
On Wednesday we took Bill to Hammersmith and Fulham foodbank where he met foodbank clients, heard their stories and even packed a foodbox himself. At the end of his visit we asked Bill what he thought, he told us: 'It's very moving to come here in modern times to see a room incredibly well stocked with donated food for people who, through no fault of their own, have dropped through the cracks. The fact that the people here volunteer to help is both touching and exemplary. I salute all those involved.'
Watch Guardian online's film of Bill's visit
Following the closure of three local companies, Okehampton foodbank has seen numbers needing emergency food soar from 20 to 200 per week. Unemployment in the Devon town has risen from 2% to nearly 12% leaving many former employees with no choice but to rely on food parcels from Okehampton foodbank until redundancy packages and benefit payments come through.
The plight of the people in Okehampton and surge in numbers turning to the foodbank has been widely reported by the national media. Whilst local people have rallied to provide extra food to meet the demand, the foodbank is still under pressure. Okehampton foodbank's Andrew Morgan told the Guardian, "We are still appealing for food, it is desperately needed: some staff made redundant hadn't been paid for weeks. There really are people with no money and they really can't afford to put food on the table."
Adrian and Kay Vernon were both made redundant from Polestar foods, Okehampton, and suddenly left with no money. With a four-year-old daughter to feed, Adrian told the BBC that his foodbox was 'a lifesaver'.
Unemployment nationwide is at a 17-year high and foodbanks across the country are experiencing huge demand. This year the UK foodbank network estimates it has fed 60,000 people; an increase of nearly 20,000 people from the previous year.
