Man to embark on 'foodbankathon' charity walk in Coventry

Gavin Kibble will take on the fundraising walk between 15 foodbanks in Coventry on 29 May

A fundraiser is inviting members of the public to join him as he embarks on a walk to collect money for foodbanks.

Gavin Kibble, who founded the Coventry Foodbank in Binley, will take on a walk between 15 foodbanks on 29 May.

The 20-mile (32km) "foodbankathon", starting in Canley, is expected to take six hours to complete before ending at The Halo Centre.

Mr Kibble has encouraged more people to join him on his "pilgrimage" between foodbanks in the city.

"Since I founded Coventry Foodbank, I thought it would be a nice idea to walk the length and breadth of the network," he said.

"I'd love it if as many people as possible could join me on this pilgrimage from West to East of Coventry, to celebrate 12 years of the life of Coventry Foodbank."

The route will take him from St Stephen's Church in Canley, through to several foodbanks in the city centre including the Baptist Church in Foleshill, Coventry City Mission, Walsgrave Baptist Church and Willenhall Foodbank.

The route will take him from St Stephen's Church in Canley, through to several foodbanks in the city centre

The Coventry Foodbank, founded in 2011, currently distributes food through 13 partner churches across the city.

It has seen a demand for its services rise due to the cost of living crisis and currently provides food to 800 people a week, up from 500 people per week last year.

About 3% of families in the UK, at least 2.1 million people, used a food bank in the last year up until March 2022, according to figures from Department for Work and Pensions.

Mr Kibble, who received an MBE from Queen Elizabeth II in 2021, has encouraged others to join him on "The Great Coventry Foodbankathon", to help raise further awareness.

"Please come and join me for one or two segments of the route or, if you're feeling really up for it, the full 32 kilometres," he added.