Organisers say donations falling during the summer, just as more families seek help

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

Food banks in some of the UK’s poorest areas are running critically low on supplies because of a spike in demand during the school holidays.

Organisers say more families are seeking help in the summer holidays than in previous years, yet donations are falling.

Tricia Ryder, a distribution centre manager at Leeds North and West food bank, said: “We’re running critically low on supplies. The summer months are always the time when we get the least donations, but each summer we’re getting more and more attendants.”

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Ryder said there had been a drop in donations over the summer, which she believed was due to people being less financially secure.

“A lot of the people who donate outside of the summer holidays are people that are then struggling themselves when their children are off,” she said.

“It’s really difficult because there may be occasions where people are not getting their regular food parcel because we’re low on certain things.”

Like many of the food banks the Guardian spoke to, Leeds North and West, which has seven centres across the area, was short on items including long-life milk and juice, pasta sauce and tinned meat, fish, fruit and vegetables.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest A sign at a Salvation Army food bank in Preston, Lancashire. Photograph: Colin Mcpherson/The Guardian

Although national figures are yet to be calculated for the number of food parcels distributed to people in need this summer, many food banks have reported an increase.

In 2018 the Trussell Trust, which supports more than 1,200 food banks, gave out a record 87,496 parcels to children during the summer holidays – an increase of 20% on the previous year – as part of 239,196 three-day emergency supplies.

During July and August 2017, more than 204,525 three-day emergency supplies were provided by food banks, 73,226 of which went to children. In the two months before, 70,510 supplies were given to children.

Foods banks in Preston, Leeds, Watford, Salford, Bradford, Newcastle, Merseyside, Nottingham and north-east Somerset were among those reporting food shortages during the school holidays this year.

Andrew Tranter, 75, who runs Watford food bank, said while the shelves were usually well-stocked in winter – due to higher donations during the harvest festival and Christmas – supplies often dwindled in the summer months.

He said there had been a year-on-year increase in demand for the food bank’s services. “Our stock in the last month was six tonnes, and we gave out seven-and-a-half tonnes. So far this month, we’ve received three tonnes of donations but given out three-and-a-half tonnes.”

Many food banks are using online donations to stock up supplies, including at Waterloo food bank in Lambeth, south London.

The centre’s manager, Rebekah Gibson, said it was “struggling for supplies” after helping 450 people this summer – an increase of 20% on last year.

“This year we’re running a holiday programme for families, including hot lunches and breakfast some days, as well as activities and trips. Despite this, we are still seeing a lot of families at the food bank,” she added.

The Trussell Trust’s chief executive, Emma Revie, said: “An increase in demand during the summer holidays can sometimes lead to a shortage in supplies. When this is the case, we urge the public to check with their local food bank to see what they might be short of as each food bank has its own unique needs.

“An emergency food parcel, listening ear and compassionate, practical advice at the food bank can be the boost someone needs to break free from poverty. Any donations make a real difference.”

With September’s harvest festival on the horizon, during which many schools across the country collect and donate items to food banks, most sites are expecting supplies to pick up over the winter.

However, supplies are expected to be at their lowest in early September. “There will probably be even more families coming in during the last week of the holidays because of the additional costs of school uniform,” said Ryder.