Foodbank fuelled by Pattison Arctic Challenge

North East reality star Vicky Pattison visited Hebburn Helps earlier this month

TV star Vicky Pattison has completed her Arctic challenge to raise money for Comic Relief.

Among the charities to benefit will be the Hebburn Helps Foodbank in South Tyneside.

It was in spotlight last week when Vicky became visibly upset on BBC Breakfast as she spoke about the women she met there.

She said: "It’s really sad. There’s nurses, teaching assistants, good, decent, hardworking women... who can’t afford to put a decent meal on the table for their kids and get them their school shoes."

Among the people Vicky met was Rachael who works as a teaching assistant.

She started using the foodbank when she became a single parent to her two sons.

Mum-of-two Rachael said she never expected to need to go to a foodbank

She said: "The wages don't cover the cost of living, they don't cover everything you need. I'm fed up of saying 'Mummy doesn't have any money'."

Rachael said she uses goods that are on the Hebburn Helps community tables to help free up money for items like shoes for her boys.

The goods come from FareShare, which is funded by Comic Relief and distributes surplus supermarket food that would otherwise go to waste.

She said: "I work really hard and, when I did start using it, I used to sneak in the back door - like I used to be really embarrassed, I didn't talk to anyone, just pick up what I needed and then scurry away."

'Awesome' help

Hebburn Helps user Stacey, which is not her real name, said she regularly uses the foodbank and relies on the sanitary and hygiene products they give out.

She said: “It’s such a worry when that time arrives and there’s nothing to protect you or you have to make do with whatever.

"It’s an embarrassing, humiliating time of the month but they are awesome for helping with that.

"And loo roll’s a luxury sometimes. It’s bad, it’s really bad."

Angie Comerford, who co-founded Hebburn Helps, said demand is rising for the different products now available, with some families having to make incredibly tough choices.

She said: "We had a family in - she had a baby and a girl who was of period age.

"She had to choose whether she was going to be buying nappies or sanitary products.

"You’re obviously going to buy the nappies because babies are going to leave mess all over, that meant therefore the child had to stay off school."

Laura Whitmore, Sara Davies, Alex Scott and Vicky Pattison completed the 'Snow Going Back' challenge for Comic Relief

On Friday, Vicky Pattison, Alex Scott, Sara Davies and Laura Whitmore completed Comic Relief’s coldest ever challenge.

Over four days they took on an endurance mission in the Arctic Circle: fat-biking, cross country skiing and trekking 50km across the frozen terrain where British Special Forces train.

Speaking ahead of the challenge, Vicky said: “There will be moments where I just want to give up, but I think what’s going to keep me going is the reason why I’m doing it.

"Donations to Red Nose Day are incredibly beneficial to charities like Hebburn Helps and I saw that first hand."