Norfolk foodbanks 'feeding more children than ever'

All foodbanks ask people to check what is needed in their area, with donations of treats always welcome

A foodbank has said it is feeding more children than ever and anticipated a "surge of people struggling" in winter.

The proportion of children among those helped by a centre in King's Lynn, Norfolk, has risen from 33% to 38%, project manager Helen Gilbert said.

A Gorleston foodbank said it expected demand to rise by a quarter on last winter.

"We're worried about what that looks like for the future," said the Reverend Matthew Price.

BBC Radio Norfolk has asked listeners to consider donating advent calendars to foodbank collection points.

The appeal aims to bring some Christmas cheer to food parcels containing emergency essentials.

The Reverend Matthew Price said people did not have to go fancy, with a "bog standard chocolate advent calendar" likely to bring the most joy

St Mary Magdalene Church in Gorleston, which gives out food parcels in one of the most deprived communities in Norfolk, said it had seen a rising need.

"Last winter we sent out nearly 3,500 food parcels between October and March, and we're expecting that to rise something like 26% this winter," said Mr Price.

"We've also seen donations go down, and that's the other thing worrying us.

"Our forecast is that we would need to spend £40,000 on food to meet demand over the next six months."

He added that the generosity of individuals and grant-making organisations like the Norfolk Community Foundation meant "nobody goes hungry in Norfolk".

"Foodbank is about emergency provision, but being able to add an advent calendar, that bit of joy, brings real smiles to families," he added.

'Spiralling out of control'

In King's Lynn, Ms Gilbert said it made "such a difference" to those who receive the treat.

"We are proportionally feeding more children than ever before," she added.

"We hear from parents time and time again that their worry is about trying to keep things normal when things are perhaps spiralling out of control for themselves financially.

"Something as simple as an advent calendar relieves that pressure, so they can focus on the bigger picture, knowing their children are getting that experience of the little things at Christmas."

The foodbank gave out 68% more energy vouchers year-on-year in May to September, which she described as "staggering" considering usage is lower in summer.

"I can see we are going to have a real surge of people struggling," she added.

All three foodbanks said it made a huge difference adding a treat to a box of essentials

Norwich Foodbank, run by Hannah Worsley, said demand was up and donations were down slightly as everyone felt the pinch of rising food costs.

"We are grateful to everyone who is giving; we just seem to be giving out a lot more," she added.

"We gave out just over 1,000 food parcels in October and we expect that to be significantly more in November and December."

She said it had been "lovely" to brighten people's day during previous advent calendar appeals, especially when they had enough to give adults the treat as well as children.