Hartlepool Baby Bank: Demand soars amid cost of living crisis

Emilie de Bruijn said she worried they might have to let a family down

A baby bank has seen demand for its help soar in recent months as the cost of living crisis continues to bite.

It helps families in Hartlepool and the surrounding area with items from food and clothing, to prams and nappies, all free and given by donations.

Emilie de Bruijn is one of the founders of the service, which was set up in February 2019.

She said it helped an average of about 60 families a week at the start of the year, but that had more than doubled.

"At the start of 2022, if we had done 50 to 60 families a week we used to be tired and think 'wow'," she said.

"In September the average had climbed to 120 week-on-week, and October and November we're getting to 150 to 160."

'Really anxious'

The team relies heavily on donations, and said that due to the increase in demand it now has to put more people than ever on waiting lists.

Ms de Bruijn said: "I have started to be really anxious about how will we provide for all of those people.

"We've never ever let a family down and I don't want to, because ultimately I'm letting down someone's child.

"As a mother the concept of letting down a little person is just gut wrenching, it's heart breaking, but eventually I do fear we will."

The baby bank runs drop-in sessions from 10:00 to 14:00 every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.