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Charity combatting food poverty needs more volunteers
A charity helping people across the South West needs volunteers as lockdown continues.
FoodCycle, which works to combat food poverty in Bath, Bristol and Exeter needs more people to help them.
As current volunteers have had to shield or isolate, the charity is struggling to provide weekly meals and food provision to those who need it most.
is needed now More than ever
With more than 68 per cent of people FoodCycle supports worry they can’t afford to live and relying on weekly meals from the charity, food collection, surplus food coordinators and delivery drivers are needed to supply goods to people who are vulnerable across Bristol and beyond.
Volunteers are also needed to support cooking and hosting at the Click and Collect projects: helping people to get into the kitchen and cook meals themselves, learning how to good nutritious and tasty vegetarian food.
Unable to bring people together through community meals for much of 2020 due to Government restrictions, Foodcycle also has launched Check-in and Chat, with volunteers calling guests for a weekly talk to help combat social isolation. This service is also looking for new volunteers.
Volunteers can help to cook food
“Being a part of FoodCycle gives our volunteers a real sense of purpose in these unusual times,” says Alex Hatherly, FoodCycle’s South West regional manager.
“People often sign up to give something back but end up staying because of how much they gain from it. Not only does it make such a huge difference to the people that receive the food but leads to our volunteers making friends and feeling part of the community.
“We really do need more volunteers to ensure that we can keep this vital service running.”
Since launching Cook and Collect in Bristol, which is at held Barton Hill Settlement and Easton Christian Family Centre, FoodCycle volunteers have saved nearly one tonne of surplus food, equivalent to 2,837 meals.
People who are shielding or have been told to isolate can’t volunteer. Neither can anyone who is showing coronavirus symptoms or has been in contact with someone who has tested positive.
For those who can volunteer, compulsory wearing of face coverings, hand sanitising stations, socially distanced queues and collecting data in line with track and trace has been implemented to keep everyone safe.
The charity urgently need more volunteers to help cook and distribute food
With lockdown continuing to the beginning of December, with the return after that of a regional tiered approach, difficult times continue, with services such as FoodCycle offering a welcome respite to uncertainty.
“It makes me very happy that Foodcycle are still looking out for people and caring for the community during this time,” says one person supported by the charity.
“Every week is like Christmas as I never know what new ingredient or new food I’ll get to try and I also feel its been prepared and made with love.”
All photos: FoodCycle
Read more: New campaign hopes to build stockpile of emergency food
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