Emergency Appeal helps Truro Foodbank ‘feed more children than they ever have before’

Truro Foodbank (TF), part of the Trussell Trust, has received £4,000 from the Cornwall Coronavirus Emergency Appeal so they can continue to provide emergency food and support to people in crisis in and around the county’s capital, Truro.

Simon Fann, TF spokesman, reports that records show that they “are feeding many more children than we have ever had to before…In March 2020 we fed 533 people, nearly 50% being children. In comparison in the same period, 2019 we fed 192 people, 119 being adults and 73 being children.” This considerable rise in numbers can be directly attributed to the current situation around the impact of the Covid-19 crisis.

Truro Foodbank operates from two centres, All Saints Church, Highertown and Truro Methodist Church on specified weekdays. The Foodbank distributes parcels to provide a minimum of three days’ nutritionally balanced, tinned and dried food to those in need, all of which is usually donated by the local community.

But as demand has increased, the donations received through the usual collection bins have decreased. Simon continues, “The first priority use of the funding was to replenish a range of stock needed to enable us to continue supply a quality food parcel to individuals and families. We have met demand at face value. This is not just to give people the right amount of food, it is also us thinking that if we give as much food as we can we are hopefully also cutting down on journeys people have to make as this should last them for quite a few days.

“The Cornwall Community Foundation (CCF) funding has been of massive assistance. Operationally, by enabling us to actually buy stock in the anticipation that the level of demand is likely to continue for some time. Strategically, by allowing us to focus on getting food and supplying it, rather than immediately having to focus on fundraising.”

Many of those finding themselves in need of foodbanks have been laid off, not furloughed and have come from a variety of trades. A common phrase that is heard all too often now is “I did not expect to be here…”