Food bank rollercoaster. Huge empathy to Fury!! Is it just me?

Our local foodbank is a Trussell Trust one and you do need to be referred to it. However, we also have a local community fridge which can be used by anyone and our local 'hive' (a community run base for various groups and activities) often gets leftover food donated from various shops and when this happens, they advertise it on Facebook and anyone can pop in and help themselves.
Incidentally, I watched a really interesting programme a while back with Kathy Burke in which she visited a foodbank and the man who ran it spoke about people who criticised their users for getting food donations and then doing things like going to a nail bar. He said something along the lines that if that person had got food from them then gone to get her nails done, maybe that was the one thing which gave her a boost and helped give a a lift for the rest of the week - and he had no problem with that. Food for thought, in more ways than one.

when we were first married ,had a brand new business and lived on toasted cheese we aways made sure my OH got 2/- for a pint with his friends one evening a week.We could have used it for more sensible things but after knocking doors all week one evening out and one drink made a huge difference to him.
I see the "huge TV" or nail bar in the same light .People ...human beings regardless of how poor they are just need a wee lift in a miserable existence .
Dont judge unless you're in the same boat

Enough food is produced worldwide to feed the world population.
It's distribution and waste which is the problem.

And this Government, after years of cluelessness, is perhaps at last beginning to think about food security.
www.nfuonline.com/updates-and-information/campaigning-for-a-secure-supply-of-british-food/

There's a long way to go.

Exactly, paddyann54. I have a friend who is on benefits through disability and although she often struggles financially, she tries to put aside a little bit so she can go out for what she calls a 'proper' coffee once a week. It's her wee treat to herself and makes all the difference to her mental health.

Riverwalk
I have (in the past) struggled to pass on ground coffee in the food bank I worked in. We also had a pack of nori seaweed, a pot of lumpfish roe and some other odd products!
If someone had ever asked for lumpfish roe (or even the coffee) I would have been pretty pleased.

I live on the border of one of the richest areas in London but even so, we're reminded that some people have no money for energy to cook food so could we donate accordingly?

My way around it is to look for bargains so it may be a pack of chocolate biscuits rather than plain digestive or jars of honey or marmalade.

It must be soul-destroying dining on pasta or baked beans weekly without a treat or two. I try to put myself in their place and what would I like?

It must be soul-destroying dining on pasta or baked beans weekly without a treat or two. I try to put myself in their place and what would I like?

Yes.

I put in tinned fruit in juice, perhaps not everyone wants it but if people can't afford fresh fruit for their children it's better than no fruit at all.

I could never in a million years imagine collecting food for my kids from a food bank but spending £40 getting my nails done or anything else like Tattoos, Red Bull, cigarettes etc.

Even dressing it up as “a wee boost” to myself wouldn’t cut it! My biggest boost would be seeing my kids happy and well fed, they would always come before my own wants.

How could any Mother watch their kids go off to school with no breakfast because she has spent £40 getting her nails done?

I always try to put in a pack of 'good' biscuits (I was going to say nice biscuits, but thought people might confuse that with Nice biscuits!) as everyone deserves a wee treat.

I haven’t read the whole thread, but I agree with you BlueBelle I give a lot of clothes (sometimes never worn) to charity shops, and it offsets my guilt knowing that someone with not much money will benefit from a lovely bargain.
I don’t give stuff to charity shops thinking that someone is going to sell it on EBay and make a profit courtesy of my stupidity

Re donating to a charity shop, if you think something is more valuable than the shop is going to charge for it sell it yourself and donate the money.

Is it ok to have bought an item for £5 that is worth £50 if you do not sell it on?

When I donate it is because I no longer want the items, what happens to them doesn’t bother me at all, if the shop, a trader or a person using ebay can make a bit of money from my donation then great.

It is the thought of getting a bargain that brings people into charity shops. I think that applies whether they 'need' to buy bargains or not.

I am happy for my donations to go to whoever finds them - the only thing that gives me pause is the staff getting 'first dibs', as my donations are to the charity, not to them. I know that that is a contentious viewpoint, and I know that not every shop would allow it, but I know for certain that in the one where my mother used to volunteer it happened a lot, and the staff saw nothing wrong with it at all.

Lumiere

I volunteer at a food bank. I don't recognise any scenarios like this. I see families who are desperate, pensioners who have been too proud to ask for help, but due to excessive fuel bills, have no alternative but to ask for help
How do you know they go to nail bars and buy alcohol, do you follow them?

I do agree with most of what you have said and children should have a full tummy.
They don't have to be followed home. I question though the mentality of some people who let themselves be shown on TV at food banks, with tattoos, acrylic nails fancy styled and coloured hair, muscled men some even vaping as they leave.
The children always seem to look very undernourished.
They should all have to have some kind of official form to fill in.

FannyCornforth

I haven’t read the whole thread, but I agree with you BlueBelle I give a lot of clothes (sometimes never worn) to charity shops, and it offsets my guilt knowing that someone with not much money will benefit from a lovely bargain.
I don’t give stuff to charity shops thinking that someone is going to sell it on EBay and make a profit courtesy of my stupidity

Unfortunately Fanny I knew someone who ran a business by buying in charity shops or car boot sales took them home and resold them on E.Bay for a big profit.
They also ran a racket of buying for people on their cards who gave back a proportion spent in vouchers. The people payed them weekly and they got all the dividends from Shops like Laura Ashley and John Lewis.

I cannot get excited about what people do with things I have donated to charity.
If they make a business from it - so what!
It doesn't end up in landfill and maybe someone somewhere likes it and it has a new lease of life.
If not any rags/old shoes etc are taken to be recycled to make fabric for carseat covers or something like that.
I commend anyone who tries to make a business out of reselling charity shop finds
It's hard enough selling anything on eBay in my experience. Taking photos, answering people but the worst is packing and posting!

FannyCornforth

I haven’t read the whole thread, but I agree with you BlueBelle I give a lot of clothes (sometimes never worn) to charity shops, and it offsets my guilt knowing that someone with not much money will benefit from a lovely bargain.
I don’t give stuff to charity shops thinking that someone is going to sell it on EBay and make a profit courtesy of my stupidity

You could always sell it on EBay yourself and donate the profit to a charity of your choice.

Doodledog
I volunteer with 3 young women in our charity shop. One is the manager and receives nothing from the charity.
I know the financial circumstances of these women. They are in far worse financial difficulties than most people who come into our shop.
If I didn’t take our parcels to the post office ( in my car) there is no one else.
If I didn’t collect cushions from a lady who makes them for us, there is no one else.
I take home some clothes that are good but maybe are a little dirty. The same with clothes that need a small repair.
I have no conscience about first dibs
Ours is a local charity but not once has any of the hierarchy come into the shop to thank us.

It may well be a treat or a ‘boost’ but it was still galling to overhear a volunteer at a food bank being asked to load up one lady’s bag for her because she had “just had her nails done”.

I did say that I knew my comment was contentious. There are other ways of looking at it, but it is something that puts me off donating higher value items.

growstuff no I can’t do that.
Unfortunately I am pretty much housebound and I have my hands full as it is.

FannyCornforth

I haven’t read the whole thread, but I agree with you BlueBelle I give a lot of clothes (sometimes never worn) to charity shops, and it offsets my guilt knowing that someone with not much money will benefit from a lovely bargain.
I don’t give stuff to charity shops thinking that someone is going to sell it on EBay and make a profit courtesy of my stupidity

Fanny, the first question might be why you are giving away clothes you have never worn? And moreover feeling guilty about it?
Secondly, the objective of Charity shops is not solely to give lovely bargains to those with not much money though that is a positive offshoot. As any other business their objective is to raise as much money as possible for their charity. They couldn't survive on the high street if they only sold to the not so well off. If I'm selling at a Car Boot sale I'm grateful to a whole range of buyers from traders to small children with pennies to spend. If I were to be miffed about someone making a profit on something I'd sold, then I'd need to sort myself out and sell it myself on Ebay.

Calipso , I wish I hadn’t posted that now!
I probably have a shopping disorder as it’s one of the few things I have any control over, and I can’t easily get a sense of self of self worth.

Anyway, this thread isn’t about me, so just pretend I haven’t said owt

FannyCornforth

growstuff no I can’t do that.
Unfortunately I am pretty much housebound and I have my hands full as it is.

In that case, if it bothers you where it ends up, bin the stuff which is of no value to you. The charity shops are providing a service (and making something for charity too) and the price you're paying is not being able to choose where your donations end up.

Overthemoongran

It may well be a treat or a ‘boost’ but it was still galling to overhear a volunteer at a food bank being asked to load up one lady’s bag for her because she had “just had her nails done”.

I don't understand this. Why shouldn't somebody who buys in a charity shop be able to have her nails done?

Sorry Calipso I hadn't read your post, so mine is a duplicate.