The Somer Valley Foodbank has launched an urgent appeal for donations, fearing its busiest summer yet; a summer which is already showing an increased need for local families during the school holidays.

In previous years, the rise in the number of families struggling to stretch their money to cover the summer break has left Somer Valley Foodbank’s stocks running low. Now, the charity has launched an urgent appeal for food donations to ensure they can continue to offer emergency help in the community to people in crisis.

In the last financial year, the foodbank, which is part of the Trussell Trust’s network, fulfilled 813 vouchers, which provided three-day emergency food supplies to people in need. The Somer Valley Foodbank fed 2,472 people; of these, 1,151 were children.

While donations are vital for helping families during the coming weeks, the Somer Valley Foodbank has stressed foodbanks are not a long-term solution, and more must be done to ensure people have enough money for essentials, like food.

The charity is now backing calls by the Trussell Trust for the Government to tackle delays and gaps in benefits, which affect families’ ability to afford essentials, as a first priority. This includes ending the five week wait for a first Universal Credit payment, a key driver of increasing need at foodbanks in the Trussell Trust’s network.

More locally, the foodbank is urging local families to seek help if they are struggling to afford food this summer, and asks local people able to donate to support their work in the community.

Paul Woodward, the Foodbank Manager, explains: “No one in Midsomer Norton and the surrounding area should need a foodbank’s help, and we want to see an end to local people needing emergency food at all.

“But more and more people are finding that their income simply won’t stretch to meet the extra pressure of missing free school meals, or paying for extra childcare during the holidays.

“We know it doesn’t have to be like this. We are determined to work alongside other foodbanks in the Trussell Trust’s network to bring about long-term change to end hunger, not only during the holidays, but at any time of year.

“While we work in the long-term to tackle the reasons why people don’t have enough money, help is here in the Somer Valley area. We are able to offer this crucial support to local people because of the community’s help – we rely on local donations to run the foodbank.

“Any donations of our most-needed items will be invaluable.”

The foodbank is most in need of the following items: meat pies, corned beef, coffee, sponge puddings, rice puddings, fruit juice, chocolate, instant mash, milk (powdered & UHT), ketchup, tinned pasta, pasta sauce, tinned vegetables and tinned tomatoes. Household supplies, such as cleaning products, shampoo and shower gel are also needed.

Donations can be dropped at the Salvation Army Hall, Midsomer Norton on Mondays, from 10 a.m. – 11 a.m., in Radstock, in St Nicholas’ Church Centre foyer, from Tuesday to Friday from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.; in the foyer of Paulton Methodist Church and at Peasedown Methodist Church.

For more details, visit: www.somervalleyfoodbank.org.uk or search Facebook or Twitter for ‘Somer Valley Foodbank’.