Alarming rise in emergency food parcels given out by Horsham Foodbank

The foodbank provided 9,069 emergency parcels to people facing hardship in the last 12 months – with 3,670 of these going to children.

The figures show a 60 per cent increase in the number of food parcels distributed compared to the previous period last year.

A foodbank spokesperson said: “This is the most parcels the foodbank has ever provided in its nine year history.”

The levels of need were particularly acute in December with Horsham District Foodbank supplying nearly 1,500 emergency food parcels.

Network leader Amalia Lovett said “We are seeing residents from all walks of life needing support, people who are in full-time employment, with mortgages, who thought their incomes were enough to live on; people that are not able to stretch their budget far enough to cover the dramatic increases in bills, food, and `everyday essentials.

"However, we have seen a 50 per cent decrease in donations, as residents who once donated are now not able to or are now needing support themselves.

“We are now having to purchase food on a weekly basis, including fresh fruit and vegetables, spending £500-£700 a week.

“We, along with the other foodbanks in the Trussell Trust network, are calling on the UK government to ensure that the basic rate of Universal Credit will at least cover the essentials we all need to get by.

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"Foodbanks were set up to provide short-term support to people in an emergency, they should not be a lasting solution to hunger and poverty. No one’s income should fall so dangerously low that they cannot afford to feed their families, keep them warm or have a roof over their heads.”

Anyone who is able to donate to the Horsham Matters Cost of Living Crisis JustGiving fund is asked to visit www.justgiving.com/campaign/helpingthoseincrisis.

Horsham District Foodbank is part of the Trussell Trust’s network, which reports record levels of need in the last 12 months with almost 3 million emergency food parcels provided to people facing hardship between April 2022 and March 2023.