Birmingham food bank van stolen at 'worst time of the year'

The van was taken from Birmingham city centre on Friday night

A van used by a food bank to deliver supplies to vulnerable people has been stolen.

It belongs to the Central Birmingham Food bank, which operates in the Ladywood, Soho, Hockley, Newtown and Lozells wards, and was taken late on Friday.

Manager Patricia White said it was "the worst time of the year" to be without the van, which takes food to people unable to get to the centre.

Police are investigating the theft.

A social media appeal for information about the theft has been shared more than 4,000 times.

Some members of the public offered to donate extra food to the service or volunteered to help with delivering food parcels.

Ms White said the charity had "been absolutely blown away by the response".

The food bank is run by Birmingham Christian Centre and is part of the Trussell Trust country-wide network

"We've had numerous members of the general public kindly offering to deliver food parcels for us and we've even been contacted by a Smethwick-based commercial van hire company offering us a vehicle for a week free of charge," she said.

The food bank, based in central Ladywood, is run by Birmingham Christian Centre and is part of the Trussell Trust country-wide network.