As the cost of living crisis continues, more people are needing East Cambridgeshire’s foodbanks to cope with the demands of winter.
Three of the district’s foodbanks have seen an increase in visitors between last April and this month, with these figures expected to rise.
We highlight how foodbanks in East Cambridgeshire are coping with demand, what they hope to achieve in the coming months and where you can find your nearest service.
How has demand been at East Cambridgeshire’s foodbanks?
All services in the district under the Ely Foodbank banner, part of the Trussell Trust, have seen a rise in those attending, compared to the previous 12-month period.
In Ely, around 2,300 people have passed through its doors since April 2022, 900 more than between March 2021 and last April.
Soham saw a smaller increase, welcoming 1,035 people over the last nine months in contrast to 770 over the same 12-month timeframe, while Haddenham also recorded a rise.
Cathy Wright, project manager at Ely Foodbank, said: “Demand has increased, we have had to be able to adapt and I think we’ve done very well.
“Our pressure points are from October onwards, but we are coping.”
Across Ely Foodbank’s seven distribution centres, 80 tonnes of food have been distributed from April 2022, a quarter of that amount coming from the Ely site alone.
But Ms Wright, who has been at Ely Foodbank since its launch in 2012, is pleased with how an army of volunteers are coping.
“We knew there would be an increase in demand because it’s the winter and cost of living pressures,” she said.
“And if people are getting help, it means we are on the pathway for things to improve.”
What is it like at a foodbank?
There are roughly 200 volunteers who work at each of Ely Foodbank’s seven centres, stretching from Fenland to South Cambridgeshire.
Between April and September last year, 1.3 million emergency food parcels were given to people in hardship by Trussell Trust foodbanks, more than ever for this time of year.
Due to higher demand, more time has had to be dedicated to the Ely site, which has more volunteers than Soham and Haddenham foodbanks combined.
“Soham has had several locations, so it has been a while to get the message out [that there’s a foodbank in town],” said Ms Wright.
However, there has not been as much uptake in Haddenham, which Ms Wright feels could be down to self-pride.
“But in the last two years, the country has pulled together and helped others rather than make it awkward for them,” she said.
How are foodbanks moving forward?
Ely Foodbank has moved on since its inception 11 years ago – around 8,400 people are thought to have been fed across its centres since last April.
Thousands more are estimated to have benefitted from one of its foodbanks from 2012 to today, which has symbolised the importance of this service to local communities.
“I have seen it become a very important part of today’s community,” Ms Wright said.
“I think our target is to keep working so people don’t need foodbanks; we are trying to think of ways that help people enough.”
One way that Ely Foodbank looks to progress is to team up with other organisations, such as the Haddenham Warm Hub, that offer different types of support.
In fact, Ms Wright was planning for “a five-year mission” at Ely Foodbank but is now thinking of running more sessions on top of their current schedule.
“I’m now thinking what to do in the next 5-10 years and perhaps have an evening session for people that cannot get to us in the day,” she added.
“It feels like we are in for a rocky time, but we have new volunteers and we are doing what we can as best we can.”
Find out where the foodbanks are in East Cambridgeshire and their opening times:
Ely Foodbank
Venue: Countess Free Church, 10 Chapel Street, Ely, CB6 1AD
Opening times: Tuesdays 11am-12.30pm and Fridays 1-2.30pm
Soham Foodbank
Venue: St Andrew’s Church, Fountain Lane, Soham, CB7 5ED
Opening times: Thursdays 10.30am-12pm
Haddenham Foodbank
Venue: Holy Trinity Church, Church Lane, Haddenham, CB6 3TB
Opening times: Mondays 1-2pm
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