Week 24 - The Trussell Trust

Nothing obvious jumped out at me this week so I asked my friends on Facebook to give me a nudge.  Lots of great suggestions which I will work through over the next few months!  However one stood out as it was a charity I particularly had in mind when I started this project.

One of my motivations for wanting to donate more to charity is the frustration that charities are having to pick up the pieces of people's lives which are being ruined by the policies of our current government. I shall try not to make this a political post but suffice to say I feel the very poorest in our society are being treated inhumanely by the very system that is supposed to support and protect them.  I would happily pay more taxes.  However, our government insist on actually reducing my taxes (and quite honestly I wouldn't trust them to spend my money wisely in any case).

No-one should have to live in poverty in a modern country in the 21st century, however 13 million people in the UK live below the poverty line.  The Trussell Trust has been providing emergency food to people since 2000, started in Salisbury by Paddy and Carol Henderson.  They were working at the time to aid poverty in Bulgaria but on discovering the "hidden hunger" on their doorstep they started the first, innovative foodbank.  The idea was simple; the public "deposited" non-perishable food which was redistributed to those in urgent need, referred to the foodbank by health and social professionals such as doctors and social workers.  In 2004 the project was expanded to encourage churches and communities throughout the UK to start their own foodbanks.  In 2014/15 over 1 million food packages were provided.

The reasons for people needing emergency food are many and varied.  Less than 5% of food parcels are provided to the homeless; many are working families who have suffered redundancy, a reduction in hours or health problems.  Other reasons may be domestic violence, increased or unexpected bills (perhaps increased heating costs in the winter) or due to a delay in the payment of benefits.  49% of beneficiaries only require a single food parcel - it serves to provide a little breathing space to those is dire need.

Link
The Trussell Trust