April 2024
We last featured Bridport Food Bank in October 2020, reporting on how it had helped the town’s people during the early months of Covid. Here we are more than three years later – but if you think the return to ‘normality’ after the pandemic means food banks are less in demand now, you’re sadly wrong.
In these straitened times, amid continuing austerity and economic downturn, Bridport Food Bank is being used more than ever, and is evolving all the time to serve its users even better. “When I first got involved here, I thought it was just about giving out food, but I soon realised that people have complex underlying needs,” says Ian Bark, Acting Chair of Trustees. “These days I see it as more of a community ‘hub’ than simply a food bank. We’re not just feeding people, we’re aiming to help them get out of whatever situation it is that means they need to come to us: maybe back into a job, out of debt, clean from addiction or on the road towards better mental health. There are grey areas, too – some of our users are in employment, for instance, and still need our help.”
To this end, as well as a wide range of food products for people to choose from – and now a clothes bank providing much-needed clothing and other textiles – there are information points staffed by representatives from Citizens Advice and First Point Dorset (a charity that works to improve individuals’ housing, health and wellbeing) giving advice on a variety of subjects. There’s also a cafe serving hot drinks, biscuits and cakes so users can relax and catch up with friends during their visit.
“Lidl donate all the cakes for our cafe, as well as bread for the food bank, which is wonderful,” says Sonia Maynard, Food Bank Coordinator. “We also get donated food from Waitrose through the FareShare scheme, and Morrisons raise money for us, which they give us in vouchers – their latest campaign brought in £800 through sales of their fundraising ‘baubles’ before Christmas. Sam, the Morrisons Community Champion, has been amazing. And we get other donations from independent shops and individuals, too. We really appreciate everything we’re given, including the items that shoppers put in our boxes in Morrisons, Waitrose and Lidl – thank you!
“More people are using the food bank now, but donations of food are reducing, so we have to buy some of the things we give out. That’s why cash donations are so useful, particularly now we’re a charity and can claim Gift Aid. We buy fresh fruit and veg from Washingpool Farm, who kindly give us a discount, and bread from Evershot Bakery, as well as groceries from Morrisons using cash donations and the shop’s vouchers.”
Alongside its Wednesday session at St Mary’s Church in South Street, the food bank is now also open on Monday evenings at Bridport Youth & Community Centre in Gundry Lane. “We run this in a different, quieter way,” says Sonia, “as we know some people find the Wednesday sessions hard, and it’s also useful for anyone who’s working during the day. On Mondays we give out pre-packed bags of food, so everyone gets the same. It’s held in a small room and about 14 people come along.”
Anyone can turn up to the food bank for their first time, although they do need a referral for subsequent visits. Social services, GPs and schools are among the agencies who can refer people – as well as Citizens Advice, who can do this from their station at the Wednesday sessions – and individuals can apply though the food bank’s website. A referral covers six visits and is renewable.
So what does the food bank mean to its users? Charlie is unusual because she’s working, but by no means does this make her unique among the Wednesday visitors. She’s a qualified midwife and mental health nurse as well as a single mum of two. “I work three days a week,” she says, “and my income just about matches my outgoings. If anything unexpected happens – like the flat tyre I’ve just had on my car – there’s no money to cover it. I’d either have to earn more, which isn’t possible at the moment, or spend less. It’s the food budget that takes the hit.
“I haven’t been to the food bank for a while, because I usually work on a Wednesday, but it really helps. I’m a veggie, and I like to cook healthy food for my kids, so I pick up good ingredients here – lentils, chickpeas, cavolo nero, that sort of thing. I’ve got a couple of cookies from the cafe to take home, too.”
Of course, it’s volunteers who make this all work smoothly, and the food bank always needs more people to step up and help. There are all sorts of jobs available: you could pop in to help set up a session, come later to pack away, or stay for most of the day. People are needed to pick up food from shops, and the food bank particularly needs someone to look after its social media. There are also vacancies for volunteer trustees, which you could do alongside or instead of a practical role. If you’d like to help, do get in touch.
For more information visit www.bridportfoodbank.org or email cupboardlove.bridport@gmail.com