Demand for food parcels rockets in Black Country and Staffordshire during pandemic
More than 1,600 emergency food parcels were handed out every week to children alone in the West Midlands and Staffordshire in the first six months of the coronavirus pandemic, figures from charity The Trussell Trust reveal.
The Trussell Trust handed out 108,395 food parcels in total across the West Midlands between April and September this year – 42,369 for children.
It marks a 45 per cent increase on the same period last year adding up to an additional an additional 33,754 food parcels.
In Staffordshire 15,112 three-day emergency food parcels were sent out between April and September this year – an increase of 2,137 on last year. Now there are fears the demand is going to rise even further in the run-up to Christmas.
More Covid-19 coverage:
Nationally a record 1.2 million parcels were given to people struggling to afford essentials nationally between April and September, with charity bosses warning the figures are “the tip of the iceberg”.
It dished out 45 per cent more parcels in the West Midlands area than it did during the same six-month period last year – an additional 33,754.
Emma Revie, the charity’s chief executive, said it is “not right that any of us are forced to use a charity for food, at any time of year”.
The figures do not even include the number of people helped by community organisations, independent food banks and local authorities.
Chiefs at The Black Country Food Bank and Cannock and District Food Bank say they have also seen a huge rise in demand for help during lockdown – and believe the problem is only going to get worse as Christmas approaches.
CEO of Black Country Food Bank Jen Coleman said: “There’s certainly a huge increase in demand and there's a massive demographic we are seeing which we were not previously.”
Volunteers
Last year from January to September the food bank handed out 26,000 food parcels – each parcel holds 10 meals – to people in the Black Country area, but from the same period this year it handed out 31,000.
The charity runs almost solely on volunteers, and has had to adapt and grow in a bid to help those in need during the pandemic with more delivery hubs set up and more volunteers recruited.
Jen said: “Demand is still really high. It’s not quite as high as the first lockdown but it’s certainly higher. Christmas comes with its own challenges too. People are faced with so many financial pressures – some have to choose between heating or eating.
“So Christmas at the food bank is an incredibly busy time – but with lockdown, times that by 100. That’s how big the problem could be.
“The worry is whether it will be like this after Christmas and into January – will we go into another lockdown?”
The situation is similar across the region – and the country as a whole. Across the UK, food bank demand in the six months to September increased by 47 per cent compared to the same period last year. More than a third of food parcels went to children during this period – 470,000 in total.
Adam Tilsley, project manager at Cannock and District Food Bank, said there had been a huge jump in demand in Staffordshire as well.
The organisation feeds people in need across Cannock, Heath Hayes, Norton Canes, Burntwood, Penkridge, Great Wyrley, Huntingdon and parts of South Staffordshire.
Ashamed
Adam said between April and September 2020 there had been a 60 per cent rise in referrals to the food bank – compared to the same time period in 2019.
"There were a lot of people coming to us the first time, in the first lockdown – people who had lost their jobs. But there are still people who are afraid of using a food bank, or ashamed," he said.
The food bank used to operate from four locations pre-pandemic, but now works from eight – in a bid to reach more people. It also works closely with charities Burntwood Be A Friend and The Salvation Army.
Locally Sandwell was the worst affected area across the West Midlands, with a 157 per cent increase in the number of emergency food parcels distributed between April and September.
The Trussell Trust handed out 10,699 emergency food parcels over the period. Of these, 4,221 were for children. Overall, the charity dished out more than double the number of parcels in the area than it did during the same six-month period last year – an additional 6,534 – the most out of any other local area.
In Walsall, the charity handed out 1,628 emergency food parcels, with 845 for children. Overall, the charity handed out 36 per cent more parcels in the area than it did during the same six-month period last year – an extra 429.
In Wolverhampton the figure was a lot lower, with only seven food parcels handed out, actually 11 fewer than last year. There were no figures for Dudley.
Visit blackcountryfoodbank.org.uk or cannockdistrict.foodbank.org.uk
