Nottingham food bank braces for huge winter demand

The annual appeal aims to support 1,200 vulnerable families

A food bank is appealing for donations to fill 1,200 shoeboxes with gifts to help vulnerable people over Christmas.

Sewa Day's branch in Nottingham wants to kit out boxes with hats, scarves, hot water bottles and chocolate.

They will be donated to domestic violence survivors, children who have left care, people affected by homelessness and young families.

The boxes will be delivered across Nottingham on 17 December.

'Cold months'

The food bank, which has been operating for 18 months, currently serves 52 families, but is anticipating demand will increase as families struggle with soaring costs.

"We are expecting to be inundated with new clients in the new year," said Hetvi Parekh, who leads the charity branch.

"We know that as the cold months continue and the cost-of-living crisis rumbles on we will see more people being referred to our service.

"We are seeing stories in the news about children stealing food from school canteens, and know that some of the families we serve cannot even afford to heat the food that we deliver to them.

"The hardship that some of our clients are experiencing cannot be underestimated. "

The foodbank is also appealing for more volunteers to deliver food parcels as it says the need for bare essentials is increasing.

The charity has various drop-off points in the city and county of Nottinghamshire, including pharmacies and post offices.