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Posted on February 8th 2019
Southwark Foodbank Thanks Boys for Donating 251kg of Food
We were delighted to receive this letter in January from Southwark Foodbank thanking our boys for donating 251kg of food over Christmas. With the help of our students, the Foodbank helped 91 families over the festive period. We were delighted to support our community and look forward to a continuing relationship with the Foodbank.
At the end of last term, students were supported by the English department to collect and donate food to Southwark Foodbank. Here’s what three of our boys wrote about our Foodbank Donations Charity Appeal.
“I feel very proud to have a made a difference this Christmas”
On the 17th of December 2018, my fellow students and I delivered much needed donations to Peckham Foodbank. These items had been generously given by students and staff over the past few weeks. We delivered the large quantity of donations into the building, then received an informative talk from the kind manager.
Did you know that over 100 families will visit Peckham Foodbank over the festive period? That’s shocking! This fact shows how valuable your contribution to this service has been, providing for those in need. It was an honour to be a part of this appeal and I feel very proud to have a made a difference this Christmas.
Nihal, Year 8
“We can come together and do great things for our community”
Firstly, I believe it is important to understand who the recipients of foodbanks are. We often assume it’s solely for the homeless; we are almost ignorant to the fact that not everyone going through a financial crisis is homeless. Visiting Peckham Foodbank revealed to
me that there are many people and families living in London who may, from initial appearance, seem financially stable; however, they are unfortunately experiencing hunger because they simply can’t afford sufficient amounts of food.
Another misperception we all need to understand is that a large proportion of these people are in these troubled situations from no fault of their own. The government over the last couple of years has altered how it provides public benefits. As a result, people who previously received help from the government have since been left to suffer alone.
The change in government policy has meant that groups like the Trussell Trust has seen an exponential increase in foodbank usage. Over the last several years, foodbank usage has massively increased from 3,000 packages in 2005/6 to 1.3 million in 2017/8. The overarching problem that forces people to rely on foodbanks, according to Oxfam, is ‘immediate income crisis.’ Importantly, these individuals aren’t scroungers, lazy or cheating the system, they just have nowhere else to turn.
Personally, I believe that this trip allowed us as students to lose our sense of naivety; to uncover the harsh realities some people face in our society.
Despite our youthfulness, we too have an obligation to give within our community. The Southwark Foodbank manager mentioned the ‘relief’ which recipients often feel after a meal. I too felt this relief in the sense that our contributions will mean a person or perhaps even a family will not go hungry this Christmas.
In such a desperate time, it is essential that we all give a helping hand to those less fortunate not forgetting that falling into poverty can happen to anyone at any time.
The school donations delivered last Monday were greatly appreciated, and showed that when it matters we are able to come together and do great things for our community.
Thank you for your donations this Christmas.
Razzaq and Zack, Year 11
