Could you spare two hours volunteering for Stratford Foodbank at our next Tesco food drive?
When?
On Friday July 6th and Saturday July 7th, Stratford Foodbank needs volunteers to help with a two-day food collection. Sessions run from 9-11am, 11am – 1pm, 1pm – 3pm, and 3pm – 5pm both days.
Where?
The food drive is held at Tesco on the Birmingham Road. Work will take place in store and in the warehouse cabin, opposite Tesco’s Click ‘n’ Collect’ at the top left hand side of the carpark. This is an ideal volunteering opportunity for families. An experienced foodbank volunteer will lead each session.
Volunteer Tasks
Tasks include handing out shopping lists, labelling food, wheeling trollies of food across to the warehouse, and weighing and shelving food in the warehouse. Warehouse work will require light lifting and twisting; in store work will require some interaction with the public.
Why the need?
The summer food drive is very important as we are seeing a dip in donations and some lines are running low. Last month we gave away a 1/3 more food than we took in. We are particularly low on items such as UHT Juice, UHT Milk, and biscuits and non-core food lines such as washing up liquid, washing powder and shampoo. August and September were peak months for us last year so we need to be prepare for that again this year. We believe the increase we see late summer is due to school meals no longer being available as a source of family support.
How to express an interest
Please email [email protected] and let us know which shift you would be interested in: Fri 6th July and Sat 7th July at the following two hourly sessions: 9-11am, 11am – 1pm, 1pm – 3pm, and 3pm – 5pm. You can volunteer for more than one shift if you wish. Families are welcome but anyone under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult at all times
Data from Stratford Foodbank
- In 2016 we gave out 1375 parcels, an avg 115 a month
- In 2017 we gave out 2163 parcels, an avg 180 a month, (up 57% yr. on yr).
- In the first three months of 2018 we gave out an avg 196 a month
- 2018 usage rates lead us to expect a rise this year of 9% on 2017 levels
- We believe the steep increase in 2017 reflected the roll out of universal credit but figures are still rising this year.
- The average number of visits by clients to foodbanks nationally is 2
Please consider if you can help us, I can guarantee you that the time you offer really will make a difference to those in crisis in our town. Our food drive volunteers work hard but the great team spirit felt during these collections is very rewarding.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Marion Homer – Foodbank Manager
link to pdf version
