Glossopdale Foodbank feeds the thousands during the festive season

The foodbank has been providing the community with vital help during the winter months thanks to their food parcel schemes.

The foodbank sorting centre on a Wednesday morning is a busy sight – volunteers packing away multiple food parcels, enough to feed one person fully for three days, before sending them off to the collection sites around Glossop, Hadfield and Gamesley. The food parcels have nourished thousands in the last months, and this is all thanks to the wonderful work Charlotte Kelly and the team of volunteers put in to feed those in need of help.

Whilst the work that the team do is fantastic and deserves high praise, it does highlight a problem within this country. This year alone, almost 3 million people in the UK have been supplied with the three-day food parcels. Charlotte told us that the demand has been growing at Glossopdale Foodbank. “. There has still been a massive increase in demand, it started in COVID but has just gone up still because of the cost of living. Last month we supported 417 adults and 215 children. In the packs we give three meals a day for three days in each pack, so last month we gave out 5,500 meals.”

The meal packs they distribute are not just basics – they provide filling ingredients that are enough to fill up someone and provide them with nutrition for the three-day period. “We make sure there is a balanced diet in the packs,” Charlotte said, “and we link up with all the other food projects in the area to support all the people there.”

The support that Glossopdale Foodbank gives to the community is also mirrored back to them, with local groups and businesses donating on a regular basis to the group. Charlotte told us of the communities and businesses around Glossop and further afield donating to the foodbank, and also told us what is in demand for people looking to donate. “Businesses, churches, community groups, families all support us massively. All our items at the moment are in demand and on the website is a list of what we most need. Christmas goodies like chocolates, biscuits and other luxury items are needed for this time of year as well.”

For anyone requiring a food parcel from the foodbank, there are collection points at Hadfield children’s centre, Glossop children’s centre and Gamesley children’s centre. Anyone is welcome to go down and self-referrals are accepted. For more information head to https://glossopdalefoodbank.org.uk/