THE DISPATCH
FOODBANKS
A £500 bill just to keep the fridges on. How the energy crisis is now even threatening Britain’s foodbanks
A foodbank serving 3,000 people is facing closure by Christmas, as soaring energy bills leave it struggling to cover its costs.
We Care Food Bank in South London, which says it is the largest in Britain, says costs including £500 monthly charges to run its fridges are leaving it on the brink of bankruptcy.
Its founder, Ray Barron-Woolford, warns independent foodbanks all over the country are making the same bleak choices.
“We will barely get to Christmas, but we won’t survive beyond that because you can’t get funding to run your fridges,” he told The Big Issue.
“The people we reach are those right at the very bottom, who fall off the scale. All they have is the foodbanks. If we all go, what the hell is going to be there to pick up the pieces?”
It is not a question of donations. Some coming to the foodbank are even refusing to take fresh vegetables as soaring energy bills mean they can’t afford to cook them, and are asking for soap as they can’t afford to run their washing machines.
Barron-Woolford is hearing stories of people putting their safety at risk by burning wood in their sinks as makeshift cookers, or cooking in communal hallways with plugs meant for cleaners.
Instead, allocation of funding is a big problem, with Woolford-Barron saying We Care misses out because of arcane rules. He called for supermarkets, too, to increase their donations to the smaller foodbanks.
“What is so frustrating is that the government is presuming people can get help from the foodbanks. We are all on the verge
