Number of food parcels given out by food bank in Barrow

The charity said it is not right that so many people across the UK are facing destitution and warned the need for food banks will rise over the winter.

This comes following news of vandalism at Barrow Foodbank which left manager Claire Coulthurst devastated.

"Myself, staff, trustees and volunteers at Barrow Foodbank are absolutely devastated that the break-in occurred and the inconvenience it has caused within the warehouse," she said.

CONCERN: Barrow Foodbank manager Claire Coulthurst

In Barrow, 1,445 emergency food parcels – containing three or seven days' worth of supplies – were handed out by the Trussell Trust between April and September.

However, this was 23 per cent fewer than during the same period in 2020, and below the 2,746 given out in 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic.

This means around 5,100 emergency food parcels were provided for people across the UK every day, including almost 2,000 for children.

The Trussell Trust said it expects this to rise to more than 7,000 a day in December, as poorer families struggle with rising fuel costs, inflation and the recent removal of the £20-a-week Universal Credit uplift.

ISSUE: Universal Credit

The figures do not include the number of people helped by thousands of other groups providing food aid such as community organisations and independent food banks.

Emma Revie, Trussell Trust chief executive, said: “Everyone in the UK should be able to afford the essentials – to buy their own food and heat their homes.

“Yet food banks in our network continue to see more and more people facing destitution with an increase in food parcels going to children. This is not right.”

She added: “The answer must be for us to have the stability of a strong enough social security system to protect any one of us when we need it."

More than 350,000 parcels went to children between April and September this year – 15 per cent more than in 2019.

In Barrow, 506 were handed to youngsters, compared to 786 last year.