Newslink
Summer 2016
Holiday Clubs are helping to relieve the pressure that many families face during school holidays. Find out more on page 7
2 Newslink
Summer 2016
Welcome Once again it’s been another busy few months here at The Trussell Trust. Our latest annual stats release in April, which you can read more about in this issue, highlighted that UK hunger and poverty continues to remain an issue with foodbank use at a record high. We were saddened to report that again over one million three-day emergency food supplies had been distributed across The Trussell Trust Foodbank Network in the previous year. 1,109,309 to be exact. It’s vital we don’t let this become the new normal. I won’t accept this level of reliance on foodbank use as an everyday, run of the mill aspect of our society. And I know you won’t either. We continue to look at increasing the depth and breadth of our work, preventing people from further crisis. Our More Than Food programme is seeing great results, as you can read in this issue details of our Holiday Clubs project and news about the Fuel Bank™ roll-out. Now the result of EU Referendum is known, we are keen to know what effects the exit will have. Uncertain times ahead, but it’s certain that we need to keep focusing on helping people in crisis, and building relationships with the new Government to ensure the interests of those struggling with low incomes are looked after and kept on the agenda. I want to thank you for making it possible for us to help people to find their own
path out of poverty and become more resilient to the ups and downs of the economy. It’s the only long-term solution there is to stopping UK hunger and tackling poverty. We are really proud to be acknowledged as The Charity Award 2016 Overall Winner, recognising the many thousands of donors, volunteers and staff who have built this strong supportive network that provides a safety to net people who otherwise have none. In the times we are now living in, we know the existence of that safety net is needed more than ever. So thank you again for your continued support, meaning that no one struggling with hunger and poverty needs to face that challenge alone. I hope you enjoy this issue.
David McAuley - Chief Executive
Contents 4-6
News in brief
Number of three-day emergency food supplies given to people in crisis.
7
Apr 2015 - Apr 2016
1,109,309 School’s out for summer Apr 2014 - Apr 2015
How our Holiday Clubs project is helping struggling families during the school holidays
11
Join our Opinion Team We love to hear from our supporters, that’s why we’ve set up an Opinion Team to make it easy for you to share your thoughts with us. As part of the team, you’ll be asked to fill in a quick, anonymous questionnaire each month. The Opinion Team has already answered questions about how we work with politicians, our relationship with Tesco and how we are perceived more generally. It won’t take much of your time, but your feedback will help us improve our services and develop new ideas. To join the Opinion Team please visit www.trusselltrust.org/opinions
One million too many Read the story of Sarah and her family’s struggle with food poverty
14
Love Coventry Learning about Coventry Foodbank’s social enterprise project
18
The basic essentials How toiletry donations are just as important as food
4 Newslink
Summer 2016
News in brief More Fuel Banks opening Following a successful pilot in four areas of the UK, the Fuel Bank™ scheme in partnership with npower has been rolled out to 10 new areas, including the first Welsh and Scottish foodbanks. The initiative supports foodbank clients on pre-payment meters by issuing them with a fuel voucher, providing two weeks’ worth of gas or electricity. Since its launch in April last year, the scheme has issued over 9,000 vouchers, helping 21,000 people, including 8,000 children. Mother-of-four, Marie, who was the first client of the Fuel Bank™ that recently opened at Brent Foodbank said: “You don’t want to live in darkness, so you just go without heat. Without the voucher, we’d be even worse off.”
After being made redundant, 31-year-old Jamie (pictured above) started to struggle and turned to Brent Foodbank for help. As well as emergency food support, the foodbank was able to provide him with a Fuel Bank™ voucher, so he could cook the food he was given, heat his home and have a hot shower. Jamie said: “When you don’t have the necessary means to do things, you’re stuck. I wouldn’t want to turn up to a job interview without looking clean and presentable, and I wouldn’t want to do a full days’ work without knowing I’d be able to go home and have something to eat.”
Fantastic fundraising! A big thank you to everyone who has taken on a fundraising challenge in support of us so far this year, like three brothers Chris, Alex and Matt (pictured left) who ran the Paris Marathon in memory of their Dad and raised an incredible £7000. Alex said: “Dad had done some amazing community work volunteering with Colchester Foodbank and we wanted to carry on his efforts. It’s lovely to think we can see the benefits while walking around town, right on our doorstep.”
Summer 2016
Inspiring DAY AT THE ANNUAL Foodbank conference “The foodbank movement has shown that no-one needs to go hungry in the UK; that the communities we live in are kind-hearted, empathetic and willing to be generous.” These were the words of Chairman, Chris Mould as he opened our 12th annual Foodbank Conference in May, when foodbank staff and volunteers from across the country gathered to reflect on our busiest year so far. It was an enjoyable day with foodbanks encouraging and learning from each other about how to tackle UK poverty and help people in crisis. The highlight of the day for many was the engaging keynote speech from Martin Lewis who is generously supporting our More Than Food programme. He said: “We want people to go to foodbanks as little as possible and hope we can intervene while they’re there. Prevention, help, getting people back on track, that’s what we want to do.”
Martin Lewis during his keynote speech at the Foodbank Conference in Birmingham.
Newslink 5
THANK YOU TO ALL OUR VOLUNTEERS! We were delighted and humbled to receive two accolades at the Charity Awards 2016, for Social Care and Welfare and the Overall Winner award.
Chief Executive, David McAuley said: “This prestigious award reflects the dedication and compassion shown by people who are serving their communities in foodbanks across the UK. We accept this award on behalf of the 40,000 volunteers who give their time so we can provide the most effective service to people thrown into crisis every day.” These awards serve to remind us that we have an important role to play in helping to stop UK hunger. We must thank all of you who help us every day to get just a little bit closer to making that happen by giving food, your time and financial support.
David McAuley - Chief Executive of The Trussell Trust, Claire Leeper - Finance Manger at The Trussell Trust and John Low - Chief Executive of Charities Aid Foundation (CAF).
6 Newslink
Summer 2016
100 new food donation points in Tesco stores Thank you to everyone who got involved with this summer’s Neighbourhood Food Collection with Tesco. Don’t worry if you missed your chance to donate, as there are now over 400 foodbank donation points in Tesco stores across the country, making it an easy way to donate essential items and help fight hunger in your community every time you shop, with Tesco topping up donations by 20%. The generous donations at local stores help ensure foodbanks have a consistent supply of high quality food, year-round, so they can always respond to people needing help in a crisis.
Incredible Easter efforts We were uplifted to read so many stories of kind-hearted people donating Easter eggs as well as emergency food over Easter, giving much needed hope to people in crisis. Like the kind-hearted Dad, who couldn’t stand the idea of children not getting any Easter treats so donated over 200 chocolate eggs to Norwich Foodbank – what a hero! It was also encouraging to see so many of you supported us during Lent. Whether this was rising to the challenge of donating 40p for 40 days, or giving something up and donating the cost of what you saved, your efforts helped us raise over £3000.
Stay in the loop with news straight to your inbox Are you keen to get a regular fix of news from The Trussell Trust straight to your inbox? Then sign up for ‘Newswire’, our bi-monthly e-newsletter so you never miss out on our updates! Visit www.trusselltrust.org/newsletter to sign up.
Summer 2016
School’s out for summer Holiday Clubs are helping to relieve the pressure that many families face during school holidays.
Newslink 7
8 Newslink
Summer 2016
During the Easter break we visited some of the foodbanks running Holiday Clubs, helping to provide food and fun to struggling families during the holidays. It gave us the chance to meet some of the families attending and learn more about the impact of these clubs. The Holiday Clubs project, currently in the pilot phase and supported by two years’ funding from the innocent foundation, is helping to relieve the pressure that many families face during the school holidays. Mother-of-five, Susan explains:
“It’s expensive trying to get out and do things with the children, and when they’re at home you’re feeding them more than when they would be at school having a free school meal.”
And for mother-of-six, Gifty (pictured above), it’s a similar situation: “We normally go out to the park but if the weather is bad, the children just watch TV or do reading. It’s difficult but I have to cope with it.” Hailsham Foodbank in East Sussex, ran their club for five sessions during the Easter holidays and manager Julie was pleased with the positive response: “The children were really looking forward to coming, we had a cooked meal every day, lots of different crafts, games and even a music session.”
Summer 2016 For many parents like Susan, offering food makes a big difference:
“Having the hot meals provided with this club has been nice, so I’ve only had to do a cheap meal in the evening, like a sandwich.” The range of activities available also helps to alleviate the boredom and isolation that many children face during the long holidays.
Newslink 9 “Clubs like these help parents like me with lots of children to come and let them play. It helps to relieve some stress, I wish it could run every holiday,” admits Gifty, who heard about the Salisbury Foodbank club through her local primary school.
“It’s been less stressful for my Mum. It’s been nice for her to be able to eat because she doesn’t normally eat at all during the day.” - Selby The clubs also provide an opportunity for parents to socialise and know they’re not the only ones struggling during the holidays, as well as offering families a chance to spend some quality time together.
Ten-year-old Ellie May (pictured above), who was happy to have been crowned the winner in the latest game tells us: “Normally I would be at home watching TV, so it’s been fun to come and play and do activities.”
“I’ve been able to have adult conversation so it’s been a really nice break and a change from usually staying indoors,” explains Susan. “The activities have been really useful for me and the kids, I’ve been interacting with the children more than I do at home with them, so it’s made us bond together as well.”
Eleven-year-old Selby agrees: “If it wasn’t here I would probably be staying in doors at home. We did arts and crafts, another day we made cookies, and there’s also been face painting. We’ve been having lots of fun.” We’re pleased to see that these clubs don’t just make a difference to the children but are enjoyable for the whole family.
The children enjoyed getting involved in a range of arts and crafts activities.
10 Newslink And Julie (pictured below), who’s currently preparing to run the club again this summer for a longer period, agrees: “A lot of the children have made new friends, and many of the people that came along said they really enjoyed bringing the family out somewhere and eating together.”
Summer 2016 Five foodbanks took part in the Holiday Clubs pilot during Easter, supporting 72 adults and 164 children. It’s been encouraging to see the positive impact these clubs have on communities; with it hoped that more foodbanks will support struggling families by running Holiday Clubs this summer. For more information please visit: www.trusselltrust.org/holiday-clubs
Want to help?
She continued: “I think it’s important that the families who really need it have this facility during the holidays; when they’re struggling with what to do with the children and worrying if they’ve got the money to feed them properly.”
Voluntary donations make our work possible. If you would like to help support our work please turn to the form at the back.
Thank you! DONATE
Newslink 11
Summer 2016
One Million too Many Trussell Trust foodbanks gave out 1,109,309 three-day emergency food supplies to people in crisis during 2015/16. One of the many families behind these foodbank statistics shares their heartbreaking story with us.
“We did not know where our next meal was going to come from and we were really struggling.” Sarah
When Sarah’s partner recently moved in it should have been a happy time for them, instead informing the council
of this change to their circumstances led to a delay to their benefits, leaving them in a desperate situation.
12 Newslink
Summer 2016 She admits that a big issue was juggling money for gas and electric, as well as for food. It was whilst they were at their local housing association discussing their struggles to pay their rent due to this benefits postponement that they were referred to their local foodbank.
“We are both on a low wage and we were left without any benefits for nearly two months. We found it really difficult,” explains the 35-year-old, mother-of-two. And sadly Sarah wasn’t the only one needing help. Our network of over 400 foodbanks gave out 1,109,309 threeday emergency food supplies during 2015/16, supporting people in crisis like Sarah.
Top five reasons for referral to Trussell Trust foodbanks in 2015-2016 27.95%
Debt
Benefit Changes
Low Income
Benefit Delays
Three-days emergency food supplies given to people in crisis in 2015-2016
According to our data, benefit delays and changes remain the biggest cause of foodbank use, accounting for 42 per cent of all referrals to foodbanks during 2015/16, affecting the lives of people like Sarah.
5.10%
“Always knowing the foodbank is there puts your mind at rest a bit; knowing you can go there and get support is brilliant,” says Sarah. While the family were glad that the foodbank was there to support them during this difficult time Sarah admits it was a stressful experience:
13.50% 6.75%
1,109,309
Homeless
23.31%
“As a parent, to not know if you’re going to be able to feed your children is shameful and degrading,” she explains. “We decided that if the help was there then we should take it because obviously we didn’t know where our next meal was going to come from at that time and we were really struggling.”
Summer 2016
“It was very worrying. It’s scary as a parent as you don’t feel as if you’re doing your job properly.” Although she had no control of the situation, Sarah felt as if she was letting her family down: “Obviously you want to be able to support your children in every way and that’s not possible when things like this happen.” And her six-year-old daughter, Frankie (picture below) is aware that hunger in the UK is an issue:
Newslink 13 lives easier and we would be better off, but we ended up really not in a good situation at all.” But despite their struggle so far, Sarah is holding out hope for a brighter future: “We’re worse off financially but obviously we’re better off emotionally and as a family we’re a lot happier.”
One million three-day food supplies given out by our foodbanks every year is one million too many and must not become the new normal. For more information on our foodbank statistics visit www.trusselltrust.org/latest-stats and join the conversation on Twitter and Facebook by using #OneMillionTooMany
“I think people who use foodbanks are like mummy. Every night I pray for poor people to have food because I care about them.” - Frankie Sarah certainly didn’t expect a simple change in circumstances to have such a big effect on her life. “Living together as a couple and both working, I never thought would be so difficult,” she admits. “I thought it would make our
If you’d like to help change the lives of people in crisis please fill in the form at the back of this booklet. Thank you!
DONATE
14 14 Newslink Newslink
Love
Summer 2016
Coventry
To celebrate Volunteers’ Week (1st-13th June) we enjoyed spending the day at Love Coventry, Coventry Foodbank’s social enterprise, learning more about the project and meeting some of their volunteers. Set up in 2013, Love Coventry, which supports Coventry Foodbank, supplies good quality donations of furniture, appliances and electrical goods to families in Coventry at a low cost.
“Love Coventry is meeting the needs of the most vulnerable in the community,” says Bill Watt, project founder.
Bill - Founder of Love Coventry
Operations Manager, Mehdi Eramabadi explains: “It’s a service for local people, everything is based on donations. People, offices and universities all host collections; they donate stuff to us, we sort it and price it for the customer.” The project also includes recycling and repairing some donated items in their workshop, and as well as selling items through their warehouse, goods are also sold via their Love Coventry eBay shop.
Newslink 15
Summer 2016
Mehdi - Operations Manager at Coventry Foodbank
Hugh - Coventry Foodbank Manager
But Mehdi reminds us that at the heart of it, it’s all about supporting people:
Love Coventry is supported by a team of 25 volunteers, regularly giving up their time to help make the project a success, and we had the pleasure of meeting a few of them.
“We keep to our vision of helping people, and helping them as much as possible. We give them hope.”
Jordan
Explaining how the project started, Bill explains, “It seemed like an obvious extension to foodbank as there are people who are struggling financially and need low cost furnishings and appliances.” Coventry Foodbank Manager, Hugh McNeil agrees that Love Coventry complements the foodbank well:
“They both address the idea that we need to support people; so as well as providing emergency food parcels we’re also providing them with any items they need to live in a home.”
Having joined the van team helping with deliveries two years ago, Jordan now helps with the running of the eBay page. He explains: “I had just left college and wanted to get a bit of work experience to help better myself. It’s a good atmosphere; I enjoy meeting new people and interacting with customers. My favourite thing is just helping people, it’s rewarding and a good thing to do.”
16 Newslink
John
Summer 2016 interacting with customers. He said: “I enjoy doing something rather than staying in the house doing nothing. I’m not very good at talking to people but since I’ve been working here it’s got easier so it’s helped me build my confidence.” Callum first heard about Love Coventry when he bought some furniture from them shortly after he moved in to his flat:
His job at Coventry University is time consuming but John fits in volunteering with Love Coventry in the workshop team and has done for a year so far. He comes in every morning for a few hours after taking his kids to school. John explains: “I fix items such as beds and wardrobes, and I also do a lot of painting; I like it as it’s my hobby. I like helping people and everybody is very nice to work with.”
Callum
“I feel like in a way I’m giving something back, they helped me out so I’m now helping them out in return.” And he’s really enjoying his volunteer experience: “It boosts your self-esteem; I was on depression medication and haven’t taken them since I’ve been helping here. It makes me feel happy helping people out, I get a nice feeling inside, I can’t stop smiling.”
Regional Hubs Regional hubs are key to The Trussell Trust’s plans to develop a stronger presence across the UK.
The newest member of the volunteer team, Callum is enjoying getting involved in all areas including doing deliveries and collections, helping to move and lift furniture, as well as
The first of these was established in January, when Coventry Foodbank and Love Coventry merged with The Trussell Trust, creating a Regional Distribution and Training Centre in Coventry.
Newslink 17
Summer 2016
Love Coventry also gives the volunteers a good opportunity to improve their skills and confidence as Mehdi explains: “We try to encourage them to do something that they like. It’s a good experience for them.”
Mehdi enjoys working alongside his team of volunteers: “I appreciate each and every one of them; they’re great. We try to make it like a family, we enjoy being together and it’s important to make the time for a coffee and chat.”
And he’s delighted with the positive feedback he’s received from previous volunteers: “When they’ve left here they’ve told us it’s given their confidence back and it’s done great things for them,” said Mehdi. “They’re able to find a job as they know they’re reliable and can take on responsibility.”
Please consider volunteering Volunteers like Jordan, John and Callum are the lifeblood of The Trussell Trust. Whether you are giving out food to people in crisis at a foodbank centre or helping sort clothes for our community shops, you will be making a real difference to the lives of people in crisis.
Summer
Have you enjoyed this issue of Newslink?
Newslink more on
To find out about the range of volunteering opportunities that The Trussell Trust offers visit www.trusselltrust.org/volunteer
2016
eve the ping to reli bs are hel e during Holiday Clu many families fac t pressure tha ys. lida school ho Find out
We really value any contribution you make and want volunteers to enjoy their experience with us.
page 7
We’d like to know what you think about our newsletter and its content. To give your feedback please visit: www.trusselltrust.org/newslink
18 18 Newslink Newslink
Summer 2016
The Basic essentials In March, the issue of the tampon tax hit the news, and when Bestwood and Bullwell Foodbank Manager, Nigel Webster shared one woman’s stark story it hit home about how important it is that foodbanks are able to give clients toiletries, including sanitary protection.
“I pulled over at the nearest service station and stood outside the men’s toilets, getting some strange looks from truckers as I took part in a Skype call with a BBC producer.”
“I was on the way to Leeds and running slightly late when I got a call about the chance to do an interview on national news about the tampon tax situation,” explains Nigel.
Nigel shared how he had recently met Rebecca at the foodbank and when they were able to give her some sanitary towels she was so grateful that she burst into tears.
Nigel Webster Bestwood and Bullwell Foodbank Manager
Summer 2016 “She said she had used torn up newspaper as a sanitary towel. That’s something I had never heard of before,” admits Nigel.
“One of the things I’ll never forget was when she said that the worst bit is not the hunger, it’s not the cold when I can’t put the heating on, but it’s the basic lack of hygiene and the humiliation of having to use torn up newspaper as a sanitary towel.” The interview attracted a lot of attention, giving a window into what it’s like to live in poverty: “It illustrates the real despair and the wider context of living in poverty; food is just one aspect but other items like toiletries and sanitary products are just as essential.” It’s natural that the first thing anyone thinks to donate to a foodbank is food, and although those donations are absolutely vital, food isn’t the only thing that’s helpful.
“If you don’t have enough money to pay for food, you won’t have enough to pay for sanitary products and toiletries, however affordable they may be.”
Newslink 19 When people come to us in desperation, it’s not just food they’re short of, but also essential personal products like deodorant, shampoo, razors, shaving gel and sanitary products, and we were delighted to see the positive impact Nigel’s interview had, with foodbanks across the country experiencing an increase in toiletry donations. “Getting involved with press is very important; we owe it to the families and individuals that we serve,” admits Nigel. He continued: “It was a fantastic opportunity to highlight such an important issue and get the message out there about the work we do at foodbanks to help people in crisis.” Nigel was glad he took the chance to share Rebecca’s story and hopes that people continue donating toiletries to foodbanks, so more women and men won’t have to go through what Rebecca did.
Bestwood & Bullwell Foodbank was set up in 2012 and in the last financial year gave out 2795 three-day emergency food supplies to people in crisis. They are just one of the many foodbanks who regularly get involved with press coverage, helping to raise awareness of UK poverty. We always welcome food and toiletry donations, but please check with your local foodbank first to see what supplies they are in need of. Visit www.trusselltrust.org/map to find your nearest foodbank.
Contact us Unit 9, Ashfield Trading Estate, Ashfield Road, Salisbury SP2 7HL
twitter.com/trusselltrust
enquiries@trusselltrust.org
facebook.com/trusselltrust
01722 580 180
www.trusselltrust.org The Trussell Trust is a charity founded on Christian principles that partners with local communities to combat poverty in the UK. Registered Charity in England & Wales (1110522) and Scotland (SC044246). Registered Limited Company in England & Wales (5434524). Photography credits: Alexandra Smart, Gabriel Bahnareanu, Graham Ormiston Kevin Lucas and Civil Society.