End of Year Statistics

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

5102 emergency food parcels provided to people facing hunger by Stratford-upon-Avon Foodbank in the past 12 months

• Alarmingly more than 36% of the parcels were provided for children in the last year
• This comes as new annual figures from Trussell show that 2.9 million food parcels were provided across the UK.  
• Anti-poverty charity Trussell, says this should be a ‘wake-up call’ for the UK government to strengthen the social security system and re-think cuts to welfare that risk forcing more people to food banks

5102 emergency food parcels were provided to people facing hardship between April 2024 and March 2025, with 1858 of these provided for children, according to new figures from Stratford-upon-Avon Foodbank released this week.

Stratford-upon-Avon Foodbank has seen a 4% slight decrease in the number of emergency food parcels distributed compared to last year.

Kate Morris, Foodbank Manager at Stratford-upon-Avon Foodbank said: “We are experiencing a consistently high level of need for emergency food parcels locally. A lot of our clients are housed in temporary accommodation, guest houses or B&Bs, which makes eating very expensive, or suffering from ill health meaning they are unable to work and can’t survive on their Universal Credit payments. As a foodbank we are seeing our donations decline year-on-year as an increasing number of people who previously donated are drawn into the cost of living crisis themselves. If more people who are in a position to help would donate a small amount regularly, this would make a massive difference. This might be a tin or packet in the supermarket donation basket each week or a regular small monthly standing order, both of these really help us. Alternatively if you are not in a position to donate yourself, organising a fundraising event is also a brilliant way to support us – we have had a variety of recent events from running a plant sale stall to a black tie fundraising dinner!”

Excerpt of a story from a local Foodbank client this week: “My experience of a Food Bank visit (full story here: https://tinyurl.com/yexby254 ) We were instantly greeted by such warmth and welcome by a Team of Angels in Green. We were offered a drink and a snack and a place to sit, my daughter who just turned 5 was happy to see an area of books and some toys. She happily played in that corner with a kind member of staff while I was seen by Marilyn.

The shame instantly lifted and I could breathe…my little girl can actually eat a decent meal. Marilyn took time to listen. For the first time in many years I wasn’t actually invisible. I was worried about finances so she instantly put in a referral to their advice service who contacted me. Fast forward 3 months and I have just collected Keys to a permanent home, my daughter is settled in her school and making friends and I have a new job. My bank account is healthy and my fridge and cupboard are always full of good wholesome food and I could have never done that without Marilyn and her wonderful colleagues. They truly are a blessing. Thank you all.”

Stratford-upon-Avon Foodbank is part of the Trussell community of food banks, which has reported persistently high levels of need in the last 12 months with almost 3 million (2,885,086) emergency food parcels provided to people facing hardship across the UK between April 2024 and March 2025. More than a million of these parcels were provided for children.

Stratford-upon-Avon Foodbank believes everybody should have enough money in their pockets to put food on the table and is calling on the community to play their part to help end the need for emergency food in the UK. Until then, the public can help make sure Stratford-upon-Avon Foodbank continues to provide warm, compassionate, practical support and advice in the year ahead by donating food or funds at https://stratforduponavon.foodbank.org.uk/.

Emma Revie, chief executive of Trussell, said: “Far too many children, families, disabled people, working people, and elderly people from across the Stratford-upon-Avon area needed to access food banks for emergency food in the past year. This should be a wake-up call to government and a stark reminder of their responsibilities to the people of the Stratford-upon-Avon area.

“A whole generation has now grown up in the Stratford-upon-Avon area where sustained high levels of food bank need feels like the norm. The community has teachers, doctors, and healthcare professionals now routinely referring people to food banks as part of their day to day jobs, showing how emergency food has sadly become a fixture. If you can, please play your part and help change this.”

Visit https://stratforduponavon.foodbank.org.uk/ to find out how you can help today.

You can find out how many emergency food parcels were provided to people facing severe hardship in your local area on the Trussell website: campaign.trussell.org.uk/parcels-by-postcode

-ENDS-

Contact:

Kate Morris, Foodbank Manager, Stratford-upon-Avon Foodbank can be reached on [email protected] or 07736 959 011

Notes to Editor

For more information on Stratford-upon-Avon Foodbank, please visit https://stratforduponavon.foodbank.org.uk/

Stratford-upon-Avon Foodbank is part of the Trussell community of food banks. For UK-wide Trussell Trust food bank statistics visit: https://www.trussell.org.uk/news-and-research/latest-stats/end-of-year-stats

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