An alternative to food banks?

In 5 years time what will £9 be worth? The foodbanks frequently ask for food that doesn't have to heated and this is because the people who need to use them don't have the money to put cards into the gas/electric meters so that they can use their cookers.

True not everyone can have a well paid job but everyone should have a living wage

AB I was responding to Parliament's post that a well paid job was the alternative to food banks.I agree with a living wage, but there are people earning that and more, who still can't manage to budget and will run out of money before the end of the week.Food banks do serve a purpose.

People who go to food banks have to have a letter from their church, DWP or doctor in order to get food from them. You cannot just turn up and be given a handout. Did you not realise, roses?

Inflation's not that bad at the moment Marelli!

Yes, I did know that Djen, and you can only use them so many times.However there are church food banks that you can turn up to and they will always give a hand out of tinned stuff, packets etc. we have one in our nearest town.

A friend is a volunteer there, and she says certain people come every week, they know that these people cannot manage their lives and money.

I remember a thread when GN first started out, where we spoke about how some of us really struggled financially in the early days of being married - or not - and having the children (this isn't a thread about a thread). If foodbanks had been around in those days, I would have been entitled to use them, I think. The girl in the flat downstairs was a single mum with 2 children and she was given a box of groceries from the local church. I was so envious.
To be really hungry, and not to know where the next meal's going to be coming from, even though there's a (small) wage coming in at the end of the week, is soul destroying. How on earth do these families cope, having to get a voucher form GP, DWP, church etc? A small bag of food doesn't last very long.

If people can only use a food bank a certain number of times, what happens to people who need it because they are working but have very few hours or a zero-hours contract?
Surely they will need to use it long term.

They have to go hungry FarNorth, people really are going hungry but many refuse to believe it or put it down to bad management of income

But you have to accept that some people cannot manage their money, and my friend is dealing with those people .It doesn't mean that they are profligate or feckless btw, there are all sorts of mental health issues around and some are regular drug users who get through any money fast .

I do accept some cannot manage their money but this is not the case of the majority. This troubles me, so like all unemployed have become work shy scroungers ,and there are people who believe this

Cafes in crypts and local pop-ups organized by community groups are one thing but national canteens, not during wartime, would be a national disgrace.

Just some of them A B, the unfortunate ones that my friend deals with week in and week out, giving church food parcels. All sorts of people use food banks, not just unemployed , I think the food banks do have a place in our society, some say there shouldn't be any ( meaning everyone should have enough money) and I get that, but there are some people that will always need help and cannot manage things.

And let's not forget (as I keep pointing out) that it isn't just in the UK that the provision and use of food banks has risen over the past decade or so. It's happening all over Europe and in the USA.

It's not just 'this government' and its policies that have caused the problem, it's worldwide.

As an aside, for those who shop with Ocado - you can donate to food banks when you place an order.

Whatever sum you donate they double that sum - sending goods from lists provided by the food banks.

rosesarered , I help run a drop in centre for people with mental health illnesses, we give a few food, I make hot broth etc through the winter months , but some are there with severe depression because the poverty they live in has dragged them down, the nuns at the local convent give homeless a cooked lunch every day . Poverty is becoming a more serious problem not one which is easing. It will get worse when the tax credit cut backs come into force. I wish the government would do less to support employers and more to support the low paid , yes giving employers three thousand off their NIC contribution helps them but if this means they can employ one more worker it often is with a zero contract, down comes unemployment figures up goes poverty

Soup kitchens used to be for the homeless, not for families whose benefits have been sanctioned.

Just because it happens in other countries does not make it right.

No one's saying it's right, durhamjen.

I was thinking the other day about the number of cafes and restaurants which, when they first open, start off very well with tasty food at reasonable prices but then go downhill. It seems that very often they are unable to maintain the standard for very long because they provide far too much choice and the consequent high level of food wastage becomes unsustainable.

I would welcome going somewhere where there is a choice of perhaps only two soups, main meals and puddings traditionally prepared from natural ingredients. Because only limited ingredients would be needed, there would be far less wastage and therefore far less expense. It would not be necessary to use processed sauces or microwaves and in my view these simple menus at much more reasonable prices would appeal to all sorts of people.

National canteens not during wartime might be a national disgrace, but food banks seem an even worse national disgrace.

Yes, Eloethan trying to provide a vast choice is bound to lead to over-production and food waste. The amount of food thrown away from restaurants and cafes is another national disgrace. More limited choice means that what is prepared is more likely to be eaten, and prices would not need to cover the wastage. The menu could change weekly, so that regular customers had a change of dish.

One of the challenges on Alan Sugar's series was an eatery. One of the teams did a pie shop - the choice was from several really good pies, with mashed potato and a vegetable. All the "tasting committee" enjoyed their meal, so did the general public. Wastage was minimal.

Failing pubs are often turned around by offering a small choice of menu, since food is the mainstay of pubs these days.so that is a good idea Eloethan.
perhaps a chain of cafes a bit like the old Lyons corner houses would be a good idea.
There were always good pie shops in Yorkshire years ago, not shops as such, even though they were called that, but really small cafes, with just pie and peas on the menu, they were very good too, yum.kept lots of people going.

You can get stuff that does not need cooking from a food bank. You can only get stuff there if you get a voucher from soc servs or CAB etc. It will give you food for 3 days and the amount depends on how many in the family. You can get up to 3 vouchers.

The most common reason for needing the food bank is a delay in benefits payments due to a change of circumstances or benefits office maladministration.