The past couple of years have seen a few changes in the way our foodbank operates. Our semi-rural location and the wide are we cover mean that we operate slightly differently from more urban foodbanks.
Here’s a run down of the most recent changes and what you need to know if you need to use our service.
1.Vouchers
To receive one of our food parcels, you will need a foodbank voucher. These days, all vouchers are issued electronically. Vouchers are best obtained in the following ways:
- By ringing the Help Through Hardship helpline on 08082 082138. The line is open Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.
- By talking to a Referral Agent (this includes people like social workers, schools, doctors) – there’s a list here.
- Call in at the One Stop Centre at Wetherby library
- Call in and see us at the Barleyfields Community Centre on Barleyfields Road in Wetherby. We’re there 10am – 11:30am Tuesdays and Fridays; and 10:30am – 12:30pm on Saturdays.
- Phone us direct on 07840 455725 or email us on [email protected]
2. Help from Money Buddies
As a general rule, you can have up to 8 foodbank vouchers during any 6 month period. If you need more than this, please don’t worry, all we will need you to do is to book an appointment (in person or over the phone) to talk confidentially to our resident Money Buddies expert. An important part of our service as a foodbank is to make sure you are getting all the help you are entitled to. The Money Buddies expert is at our foodbank every Friday and provides FREE impartial independent debt advice, budgeting support, letter writing, energy bill saving, income maximisation services and more. They don’t judge, tell or charge.
3. We can deliver
During COVID we changed to delivery for all our food parcels. We no longer do this but because our wider district can be poorly served by public transport, we can deliver if you need us to. Deliveries do take up a lot of volunteer time, however we know that some people can really struggle to get to us during the time we’re open. Please just say if you need delivery when your voucher is issued.
4. Occasional access to Fresh Food
Unfortunately, we don’t have the facilities to store fresh food and don’t include it as standard in our food parcels. We do sometimes have deliveries from local food shops at the start of our drop-in sessions. If we do have one of these deliveries, clients who attend our sessions in person will be able to pick some fresh items for themselves. A good reason to attend in person if you can!
5. Open on Saturdays
We now run a Saturday drop-in session from 10:30am to 12:30pm at the Barleyfields Community Centre in Wetherby.
If you have any more questions about how we work, please ask a volunteer.
