Chesterfield foodbanks looking for donations as demand rises by 34%

The use of foodbanks in the UK has been steadily rising over the past 10 years, but with the cost of living crisis hitting, demand has grown and donations have dropped.

Chesterfield Foodbank is part of a nationwide group of foodbanks supported by The Trussel Trust, it has six distribution centres supporting people all across Chesterfield, including – Brimington, Hasland, West Bars, New Whittington, Loundsley Green as well as the Hope Valley.

They provide food parcels with three days worth of supplies for people in desperate need, with 102 agencies in Chesterfield providing referrals to the service.

Roisin Williams-O’Gorman of Chesterfield Foodbank, said: “We are seeing more and more people who are having to use the foodbank for the first time as well as people who are in employment that simply cannot make ends meet.”

On the current rise in demand, Roisin said: “Unfortunately, demand for the food bank is continuing to increase with the drastic rise in the cost of living. This year we have seen a 34% increase in the number of people we supported than we did in the same period last year, and a 73% percent increase on the year before that.”

"We have supplied food to 7920 people from January – November, with 27% of those sadly being children.”

With the increase in residents needing to use a foodbank this year, the Chesterfield Foodbank is looking for donations. The public currently donates over 90% of the food distributed.

Roisin praised the support from the public: “We also depend on the wonderful donations we receive from people like yourselves – the donations really do make a massive difference to peoples lives. So I would like to say a massive thank you from all of us at the Foodbank.”

There is currently urgent need for certain items this Christmas, including: tinned fish, long life milk, tinned fruit, long life juice, rice pudding, tinned vegetables, tinned meat, instant noodles, tinned tomatoes, pasta sauce, soup, cereal, and biscuits.

Donations can be dropped off at their Sheepbridge warehouse, located at Unit 3, Carrwood Road Industrial Estate, Carrwood Road, Chesterfield, S41 9QB.

Several supermarkets are also offering drop off points for donations also, including: Tesco Metro (Low Pavements), Tesco Extra (Rockford Lane), Morrisons (Chatsworth Road), Morrisons (Staveley), Asda (Sheffield Road), Iceland (Sheffield Road), and SPAR (School Lane, Baslow).

More information on what and where to donate can be found on the Chesterfield Foodbank website: https://chesterfield.foodbank.org.uk/give-help/