Hitchin Food Provision Team officially formed in March 2020, since that time we have provided £118k helping local families.
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Hitchin Food Provision Team
Hitchin Food Provision Team officially formed in March 2020, since that time we have provided £118k helping local families. Where it all began
Pre-Covid the team came together to provide Christmas hampers and gifts to individuals and families in need within our local community. In the weeks before the pandemic began and words such as lockdown and furlough became part of our everyday language the Christmas Community Hamper Appeal Team were planning school holiday activities with meals included. We knew that school holidays can be a struggle for some families and we wanted to provide a meal, activities for children and support for families.
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118kAlready Raised
March 2020
March 2021
Now
As we entered lockdown we focus on what we could do to help families. Just as we were finalising the plan of creating food parcels, which would be distributed from several hubs by a small team of volunteers events overtook us and within the week, and after a flurry of emails and messages, the voucher scheme was born.
The team was able to apply for funding from various sources and even more humbling, many members of the public donated to help their community through a difficult time.
Between March 2020 and March 2021 we have received almost £90,000 in fundraising!
This has been a lifeline to many families. Over the course of the year including the Christmas Hamper period we supported 274 families. Sometimes families received just a one off voucher to see them through a rough patch, some have been helped intermittently as we have gone in and out of lockdowns meaning their work situation changes, and some are helped more regularly due to furlough or a job loss. On average we support 30 families a month.
As a team we certainly did not anticipate still being here in 2022. However, we know that times continue to be difficult and some families carry on struggling and in addition to this the anticipated increase in fuel costs may mean households choosing between heating and food. Any extra help we can provide could help in the interim.
We work closely with support available in our local area; Foodbank, The Hitchin Pantry and Feed Up Warm Up and always encourage the use of these valuable services. We work on a referral basis from professionals
Hitchin Food Provision Team officially formed in March 2020, since that time we have provided £118k helping local families.