Swale Foodbank Project Manager Esther Hurwood and
volunteer Sarah Loveridge.
Local foodbanks and community groups will receive £26,000 from Swale Borough Council to support their work helping local people.
The funding is part of the council’s foodbank grant program which was launched earlier this year to help support foodbanks and organisations who deliver essential services to the vulnerable people in the borough.
Cllr Julian Saunders, deputy cabinet member for community at the council, said:
“We’ve dedicated £26,000 to help the foodbanks and community organisations who are supporting those most vulnerable in the borough.
The Swale Foodbank in Sittingbourne has received £10,000 to for an electric van to deliver food packages to residents.
The Family Foodbank on Sheppey received £10,000 for their project that bring together a number of organisations to deliver emergency food parcels to vulnerable families and the elderly during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Citizens Advice Bureau received £6,000 to set up a dedicated helpline that provides debt advice and foodbank vouchers for those needing support.
It is crucial now more than ever that we support the essential services our local foodbanks provide for those who are struggling.
We opened the foodbank grant scheme for the first time earlier this year, and it could not have come at a better time given the pressure these services are now under as they work to respond to the pandemic.
Demand for foodbank parcels has more than doubled since the start of the pandemic and people are relying on foodbanks to help feed their families, so the work they’re doing is more important now than ever.
We’ve also worked with local foodbanks and the Community Chef to produce a recipe book using food parcel ingredients called Cooking on a Budget.
We encourage anybody who can help support our foodbanks and community organisations to do so by donating or volunteering.”
Esther Hurwood, Swale Foodbank Project Manager, said:
“We were thrilled to receive the £10,000 grant from Swale Borough Council.
It couldn’t have come at a better time as we work to support the most vulnerable people in our community through the coronavirus.
We used the money to buy a new electric van for our volunteers to make deliveries of food and essential supplies to those who are staying home.”
For more information about foodbanks, and to download the Cooking on a Budget recipe book, visit www.swale.gov.uk/foodbanks
To donate visit www.swale.foodbank.org.uk, www.familyfoodbank.org and www.faversham.foodbank.org.uk
Swale Borough Council
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