Foodboxes for local people in crisis – Norwich
A Norwich charity which supports people in times of crisis is appealing for a few luxury items to bring some festive cheer this Christmas.
Norwich Foodbank has added some items to its usual shopping list of products that people can donate to them, including tinned ham, Christmas puddings, long-life cream, mince pies and children’s selection boxes.
The charity will then distribute the added items with foodboxes to local people in crisis, such as those who have lost their job and run into money problems, suffered a family bereavement or had problems receiving their benefits.
The foodbank – which recently enjoyed a successful harvest period in conjunction with the Evening News’s Fill The Foodbank campaign – works with partner agencies such as YMCA and Age UK to feed those in need.
Project manager, Grant Habershon, said: “Last Christmas we were not really fully up and running so this Christmas will be interesting.
“Our care worker partners tell us it will be hectic in the run up to Christmas but not too busy between Christmas and New Year.
“We feel a cold winter with high fuel prices could lead to a surge of demand when the first bills start to arrive in the new year.
“We got completely cleared out at the distribution centre this week so we think it’s going to be pretty busy.”
The charity has received some much-needed early Christmas presents already though, as demand continues to increase, with 331 local people in crisis helped by Norwich Foodbank in November.
This has seen year eight pupils at Taverham High School completing their challenge of collecting 1,000 food items for the foodbank by Christmas.
Collections from Norwich Cathedral, Easton College and Tesco in Sprowston have added to this, as well as £931.42 raised by students at Notre Dame High School through various events.
Meanwhile Thorpe St Andrew School really pulled out all the stops with funds raised through a non-uniform day. Mr Habershon said: “They actually collected an amazing one tonne of food!
“This really amazed the teachers and the collection was the largest one-off collection we have ever received from any one organisation, if you exclude our supermarket collections.”
International Baccalaureate students from Notre Dame will also be helping out at a supermarket collection at Tesco on Ipswich Road on Saturday, January 14.
The Norwich foodbank is now distributing two and a half tonnes of food a month, and needs to use the whole of the warehouse supplied free to them by Nelm Development Trust. They are appealing for a separate, small administration centre. More than 100 volunteers help the charity, from staffing distribution centres to handing out leaflets at supermarkets urging customers to buy an extra item from a list of essentials for the foodbank.
For information on how you can help Norwich Foodbank, email foodnorwichproject@hotmail.co.uk or call 07955 920590.
