Poverty is not just about food – there is a deeper need on our doorsteps
by Audrey Flannagan, Christian Today:
I have been in my role as a food bank manager in South-East Glasgow for 12 years and last year our food bank alone provided 11,500 food parcels to people facing hardship, a third of the staggering 33,405 that were distributed across the whole of Glasgow. Through my work, I encounter people each week who are experiencing severe loneliness, isolation and hunger, and struggle to afford the necessary essentials to get by each day.
Often, by the time people come to us for support, they have run out of options and are struggling with feelings of shame and stigma. Recent research by the Trussell Trust found that despite 95% of people who seek help saying they were treated with dignity and respect at food banks, 60% said that they feel embarrassed while receiving support.
The Trussell Trust’s most in-depth study of hunger in the UK also revealed that one in seven people had faced hunger in the previous year. One in four individuals who walk through our food bank doors experience severe social isolation, telling us that they have not had contact with friends, relatives, or neighbours within the last a month and we know that this level of Isolation compounds the financial challenges they are facing.
Poverty is not just about food.
Some think a food bank is a place that only supplies food aid and essentials, but this is very far from the truth. We are here to provide so much more. Many of the people we support come to us in need of connection, someone to listen to, and a place where they feel welcomed.
Approximately 800 local churches operate a food bank in the Trussell Trust network and many others, like Glasgow South-East, are based in churches. This rooting in Christianity helps guide us in our work to meet the needs of our local community.
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