Two charities providing vital food to those hit by the pandemic are appealing to the people of Croydon to support the UK’s biggest Christmas food collection.
From November 19-21 charities FareShare and the Trussell Trust will be collecting food in Tesco stores across the UK and Northern Ireland.
Running since 2012, donations to the scheme are more important than ever this year, given the pressures caused by Covid-19.
During the collection, customers are encouraged to donate long-life food to help food banks and community groups support people this Christmas.
Tesco has promised to top up customer donations by 20% in cash, to aid the work of both charities.
FareShare is looking for people to volunteer at donation points in-store, as more shoppers are likely to donate if volunteers are present.
Whereas the Trussell Trust is looking for social media volunteers to share shopping lists online, as they expect to give out six emergency food parcels every minute this winter.
FareShare has tripled the amount of food it has been providing since the start of the pandemic and will be supplying food to 11,000 front-line charities and community groups supporting people this winter.
Rachel Ledwith, London development manager at Fareshare, said:
“We know that many people have already fallen victim to the economic impact of the pandemic and thousands more are at risk of losing their jobs and livelihoods. We have seen a huge increase in people turning to their local grassroots community groups for support and demand for food is more than double pre-pandemic levels.
“We would be hugely grateful to anyone who is able to volunteer this year to encourage more shoppers to donate much needed ambient food to those who need it most.”
Volunteers will need to adhere to the Covid-19 rules in place in the store and locally when they participate.
