Colin Walker depends on the food bank and is a regular visitor
Colin Walker is on his way home after being discharged from the hospital, but there’s one place he needs to visit first: his local food bank.
The 60-year-old arrives at the Colchester branch with a nurse, who takes him back to his flat after suffering a stroke.
If he hadn’t stopped to get food, he’d go back to an empty fridge, he said.
“I had to rummage through trash cans to find something to eat before I started coming here,” he says. “This food bank kept me alive.”
Food bank sees demand spike as donations drop
Colin is one of thousands of people who regularly access the food bank, which is the busiest in the east of England.
It is run by the Trussell Trust and is one of nearly 400 across the UK, with 1,300 places in its network where people can collect food.
Director Mike Beckett says he’s seeing a huge increase in demand at the same time donations are down.
Many families can no longer afford additional items to drop off at the site or at supermarkets for collection, as the cost of food increases.
Mike Beckett hopes to be able to close the food bank by 2030
On the day of Colin’s visit, the food bank – which provided meals to 16,500 people last year – had run out of shampoo, washing powder, washing-up liquid, toothbrushes and deodorant. He had extremely low stocks of pasta sauce, tea bags and squash and made an emergency appeal online.
“We used to have busy days maybe once a week but now they are all the time. Summer was quiet and we spent time preparing for winter and building up our reserves. , but we eat from those reserves that we kept,” says Mike.
Some of the people using the food bank do not have access to cooking facilities and can only receive foods like noodles that can be made with a kettle.
Many have full-time jobs but struggle to make ends meet, with nurses, teachers and police officers all having recently visited the branch.
There is also an on-unit baby bank that provides clothing and equipment
Last year, 43% of those fed were children and Mike worries about their future with the cost of living crisis set to worsen over the winter.
“I’m worried about what’s to come. Either way, December is always our busiest time, and I don’t know how people are going to cope with rising energy prices in the fall. , especially if we have a cold winter,” he said. said.
Mike says the food bank helps keep children out of care, helps them stay in school and helps adults keep their jobs. But the service is in such demand that these prevention strategies are in jeopardy.
Amanda Bonner, Community Housing Officer, agrees. She goes to the food bank to collect items for a family of three, whose parents work part-time but cannot afford to bus to the unit.
“It’s become a big part of my job now,” she says. “I have to make sure people pay their rent and unless I come here to bring them food there is a danger that they will stop paying because they have to spend that money on food. This place is crucial,” she said.
Community Housing Worker Amanda Bonner collects food for her clients
Most people only use the food bank a few times and then get back on their feet, says Mike. But others need extra support, and not just in the form of food.
“Anyone can throw food at the problem, but we try to look at it from all angles,” he says.
‘She was living on sugar water’
He remembers an elderly lady who was brought in by paramedics because she had collapsed in the street. Read also : Food insecurity and economic misery in low-income countries. When they took her home, her cupboards were completely empty.
“She was waiting for her pension and couldn’t afford to buy food and survived on glasses of water containing a teaspoon of sugar.
“We gave her biscuits and porridge and gave her a food parcel, but we were also able to refer her to Citizens Advice, who have a base here, so she could get the support she needed,” he adds.
Over 250 volunteers help out at the food bank
The food bank relies on more than 250 volunteers, including Eunice Moore, who runs a baby bank on the unit.
“People struggle so much, it’s heartbreaking,” she says. “They can’t afford to feed or clothe their babies and children, so we have all kinds of clothes and school uniforms here.”
Colchester Borough Council recently pledged £10,000 to support the food bank, which Mike says is “tremendously grateful”.
His long-term ambition is to shut it down entirely by 2030, and he dreams of living in a country where no one needs to visit.
Colin left with a cart full of food
In the short term, he would like to see reduced wait times for Universal Credit, an end to the two-child limit on social benefits and an increase in benefits to fight inflation.
The government says all UK households will receive a grant that will cut their energy bills by £400 from October and a £650 payment will be made to more than eight million low-income households who receive benefits .
“If somebody’s drowning, if somebody’s in a hole, we’ll be there. But I really hope that one day we won’t need to be there and people won’t ever need it again. to visit a food bank,” adds Mike.
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