Food banks (the hidden tax)

The more scared people are of needing foodbanks themselves one day the more likely they are to donate. Skint people give more to them than the rich do for all their posturing about philanthropy.

What did people do before foodbanks? They seem ubiquitous now, the new ‘normal’. Ditto people sleeping rough. Our city centres are full of people sitting on dirty sleeping bags with a dog on a string.

Urmstongran - the changes to the benefit system means that people are having to go without benefits for weeks. A question of making the weakest suffer, that's why we need foodbanks.

Not sure about that Telly it’s too simplistic IMO. If that were the case they’d be off the streets/not using foodbanks once the benefit money came through.
I feel it’s more to do with mental health issues & drug and alcohol addictions (the streets).
Foodbanks though ... yes perhaps in part UC. Maybe zero hours contracts.
Being judgemental here - single mums who don’t receive maintenance from their baby daddies and are happy for the State to be ‘dad’.

Unfortunately, because the UC takes so long to come through, loans can be applied for. This makes the amount given by UC to the claimant even less when it's at last received.
I dread to think about just how well the loan sharks are doing out of it.
Hence, the rough sleeping and desperate need for Foodbanks.

Unfortunately the food banks are often used by working families who still can’t make ends meet.
They have, of course, been going for years but there is plenty of evidence that the change in the benefits system (which was needed but not well enough planned) has pushed many more into poverty and desperation.
It’s really not a mental health/drug/alcohol thing Urmstongran.

I'm sure that Universal Credit and the general drop/freezing of benefits has a lot to do with it.

However people in work are being forced to use food banks because of low pay. It's not just those on the minimum wage or with zero hours contracts either. Apparently some people with reasonable, career type jobs such as nurses at the lower end of the pay scale have to use them.

Our County Council gives a grant (sufficient to pay for a part time coordinator) to both our local food banks, so in a sense every one who pays Council Tax is contributing to the Foodbanks, whether they are aware of this or not.

I am amazed that there are still posters on this thread who take comfort from the thought that sudden abject poverty only happens to 'others' - the feckless, workshy. In fact it is those who suddenly lose a good salary, who are used to a comfortable lifestyle, albeit with a maxed out credit card and big mortgage, who are ill equipped for poverty. Those who are on or close to the breadline have developed skills in make do and mend, shopping late in the evening, etc. who can manage better.

I will never forget being suddenly made redundant from my £20,000 a year job and being reduced to just under £50 per week Job Seekers. I was plunged into a deep depression, unable to pursue other employment and struggled to drag myself to the Job Centre and college. All this with a DH still working and a level playing field with some savings and no debt. If I had been on my own I would not have survived to tell this tale.

It can happen to anyone.

Below I’ve copied last year’s statistics from the Trussell Trust. They show that 28.49% of people using food banks are on a low income (that is insufficient to cover basic needs). When we have a “living wage” for everyone I really hope we will see some change.

Here’s a link to some recent research via the Trust website:
www.trusselltrust.org/what-we-do/research-advocacy/

There’s also lots you can read on the subject if you use Google Scholar as a search engine - and not all of it requires institutional access.

Here’s the info re who uses food banks:
1. Low Income (28.49%)
2. Benefit Delays (23.74%)
3. Benefit Changes (17.73%)
4. Debt (8.53%)
5. Other (7.57%)
6. Homeless (5.01%)
7. Sickness / Ill Health (2.86%)
8. No recourse to public funds (2.69%)
9. Domestic Abuse (1.41%)
- Reasons under 1%: Delayed Wages (0.81%), Child Holiday meals (0.76%), Refused STBA (0.40%)

URMSTONGRAN Wuld you prefer single mothers to let their children starve ? Or a return to babies being taken away from them because they cant afford to care for the themselves?
I'm happy to pay my tax and hope it goes where its needed NOT on nonsense like Boris' bridge that didn't happen yet still cost millions .I'd rather see babies fed and young mother be able to sleep at night .It can happen to anyone ,none of us is immune for trouble .

None of us are immune from sudden changes in circumstance, some of us are more fortunate because we have family able to help out short term, but not everybody has this safety net. Yes, there may well be some who abuse the benefit system, and undoubtedly a few predictable GN members will be along in a minute to relate stories of their single parent,smoking,iphone owning, flat screen tv neighbour who lives an extravagant lifestyle on benefits, but these stories are often urban myths, besides which, I as a tax payer am prepared to put up with the odd cheat in order to help out those who need it. What I am angry about is the fact that the food banks are needed in the first place.

The main sources of poverty are house price rises, rental charges, rates and utility bills-----all of which should have been capped before things got out of hand.
Each year brings a small rise in the state pension, but on the back of that we have increased postal charges/stamps, which swallows up the small rise and so it goes on ad-infinitum with everything else. The government as usual always gets their pound of flesh, regardless. GREEDY !!

As a family we've all made sure that nobody goes without. I've used up a quantity of savings as it was just festering in low interest so better used where it was needed and I'd like to think that others in the same position would do the same rather than see/watch the family struggling.

I couldn't care less about myself as I've had my life---- a good one, so it's time for my family to enjoy the same. I don't need anything at my time of life as long as I'm warm in winter and have enough to eat I'm happy----it doesn't take much to please me.

I also know what it's like to struggle as in the 60's bringing up 4 children on H's meagre wages, not a foodbank in sight so have experienced both ends of the spectrum, but like many others once the children were in school it was down to work on full throttle for the next 30/40 years.
No wonder I'm worn out !

Heard of the "widow's mite"?

Of course I don’t want babies to starve paddyann but it was an observation - where are the sperm donors in all this? It beggars belief that the taxpayer has to pick up the slack so much with some single mums.

And NotSpaghetti my post suggested that sleeping rough was the result of mental health & addiction.

Not all, in both cases (obviously) but definitely on the rise nonetheless. It is now the accepted norm it seems.

Oh yes, didn’t spot that urnstongran

And expect having to sleep rough can also cause mental ill health and/or addictions.

But only 5% of food bank users are homeless people it seems.

Urmston, they are off making new families with other girls like they are some sort of franchise operation, or back with their mothers who tell everyone how terrible the ex partner is and how she keeps them away from the precious graaaaandchild.

The funny thing is, when you raise a lad to think he can do no wrong, he often carries that attitude with him into later life.

Not every father who doesn't live with his children is a deadbeat dad, far from it. But there are many deadbeat dads in this country.

Dear me, how sad that some people cannot understand why people need foodbanks or feel the cities are full of people with dogs on a piece of string. God its heartbreaking really that in this country there are people who are homeless. The word makes me cringe.

There are no quick answers and its complex. There are a few people taking the and being lazy, but it is a few.

I think one major change is a lack of social mobility. If you in an area of deprivation, your physical growth stunted by a poor diet, your emotional growth stunted by fractured families and chaotic " parenting" what chance do you have? You are trapped.

I always put something in the foodbank when I go to the supermarket and wonder what the best thing to put is. I try to find something that is a nice 'treat' but wonder if I'm getting it right. Items I have put in are good quality high juice, top end cereals, quality drinking chocolate, peanut butter, tea, coffee, cake mixes, biscuits, soup. I'm sure there is something wrong with all of these. Any suggestions for things to put in. I did read someone said put baby foods, nappies etc in - what do you think?

Teetime, they sound lovely. Sanitary products, microwave pudding, Smash, toothbrushes.

I've wondered about nappies, Teetime, but they never feature on the wanted list of our local food bank, though toilet roll always does, alongside microwave rice and tinned meat and fish. I'm never sure whether to buy value goods, so I could afford more, or branded food (so less of it). The website shows photos of both, so I suppose they'll make sure that people get a mixture. They're currently asking in advance for Easter eggs, so I'm going to buy some while they're still on special offer.

I liked your comment muffin
I don’t think times have suddenly got so much harder than say in the 50’s. I don’t remember food banks back then. Does anybody?
So why now and growing exponentially?

Like others I think we should not be needing food banks in 2019 in the UK. Its a shocking indictment.

Re what to gift - having helped in an early food bank (one was "hosted" at my place of work) we found that people who couldn't afford to buy food, generally couldn't afford to put an oven on (even if they had an oven). So I would substitute the cake mix (and other "treats" that need an oven such as tinned pies,) for something that can easily be heated by some other cheaper method - or if necessary, can be eaten cold. Although this was a while ago now, I think it will sadly be much the same.

There are bound to be lists online. I tend to give more of cheaper brands as sadly there is a huge need. One family I remember was pleased to have a packet of instant custard and some tinned fruit as they only needed boiling water from a kettle and then they could have a pudding. Some people liked rice pudding too if you want to gift sweet things.

I have never forgotten how hard it was for so many to come forward for help.
It makes me feel so very lucky.