A GROUP of churches are exploring the idea of opening a foodbank after witnessing food poverty in their area.

Members from 10 churches of different denominations held a meeting to discuss opening their own foodbank or to arrange long-standing support of an existing foodbank.

The news comes as the Lancashire Telegraph campaigns to encourage readers to back foodbanks after an article revealed the shocking extent of food poverty in the region.

Suzanne Hawthorne, of the Majestic Church in Barnoldswick, said: “For a number of years our church has given out Christmas hampers and recently people had been asking if we could provide more for themselves or people they knew.

“I broached the subject of setting up a foodbank and there seemed to be a lot of support in the local area.”

Mrs Hawthorne had noted the rise of the foodbank across Lancashire, in particular Community Solutions Foodbank in Burnley that recently announced a 277 per cent increase in referrals since last year, as well as Clitheroe Foodbank, which has given away over 400 meals in it’s first two weeks.

Keith Whipp, from Barnoldswick Baptist Church, said: “From what I’ve seen there is definitely a need for a foodbank in this area.

“At the first meeting we held, we met a couple who were in food poverty. They had no money for food and it was three weeks before they got a food parcel.

“Some people just seem to be falling through the net and being left behind. Not everyone is being properly provided for by Government payments.

“They may only be struggling for a couple of weeks, so it is our hope that we would be there to support them and get them back on their feet.”

Recent figures show that more than 350, 000 people in the UK have received help from a foodbank in the past 12 months.

And the demand for food parcels in West Craven is already beginning to show. The committee has already been approached by residents facing hardship, despite having not yet officially opened their foodbank.

BAE WORKERS HAND OVER TINNED FOODS

MORE than £1,000 worth of donations will be handed to a Blackburn foodbank by a group of aerospace workers.

The manual workforce at BAE Systems’ sites at Warton and Samlesbury has donated a variety of tinned foods that will be handed out to families in need across the county.

It will all go to the Blackburn Foodbank as well as the Salvation Army foodbank in Preston and the Bridge Project in Blackpool. Phil Entwistle, site convenor for the Unite trade union, said the union’s branch at the business and a fund that is run by shop stewards at Samlesbury had each donated £100 towards the fund.

He said: “We are in a fortunate position to be working for a successful, private company, at a time when many of our fellow workers in the public sector are finding times tighter.

“We wanted to do our bit to support those facilities in local communities.”

HOW TO DONATE TO OUR FOOD BANK CAMPAIGN

THE Lancashire Telegraph has teamed up with local foodbanks to tackle the growing problem of food poverty in East Lancashire.

We are asking readers to donate food to help our campaign.

There are many foodbanks across Lancashire and all need non-perishable, in-date food.

  • Blackburn Foodbank: Take your food donations to the Distribution Centre, Unit 5, Brunswick Street, on Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 11am to 2pm. Or call 07594 215356 to arrange for donations to be collected.
  • Clitheroe Foodbank: There are collection baskets in Skipton Building Society, Natwest and Barclays Bank, all Clitheroe churches and Clitheroe Mount. Or drop off donations at Trinity Methodist Church, Parson Lane, Clitheroe, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday 11am to 1.30pm.
  • Community Solutions Foodbank: St James’ Old School, Cannon Street, Accrington, or call 01254 352591 to arrange a drop-off in Burnley.
  • Darwen Food Larder: The Food Larder has collection points in town and local churches or drop off donations at the Darwen Community Furniture Project, Unit F, Watery Lane Works, Darwen, from 9am to 5pm.
  • The Raft Foundation: Drop off in many Rossendale shops, Haslingden Tesco, churches and schools. To arrange to drop off non-perishable donations or to give money for fresh food, go to www.raftfoundation.-org, or email info@raft-foundation.org n St Philip’s Grassroots Centre in Nelson: open every Monday morning. Call 01282 877640.