Food bank donation -"something to make our clients smile"

[shuffleofftobuffalo]

This is on the list from the food bank my DD's school is working with for harvest festival - what sort of items do you think it means? Love the idea of putting something treat-y in addition to the food we'll donate.

Think brands!
children are always looking for these and if they can’t afford them…that will mean the world to them!

Chocolate ...squash ...drinks ...they always need loo roll...

I always thought food banks asked for people not to give Easter eggs etc because companies donate loads of them for children's presents etc so they'd prefer we gave other things. I may be wrong

where can we donate bag for life’s ? i habe so many just had a sort out. do i just put in supermarket bins or take to food bank?

My local food bank (Trussell trust) posts the items they need on twitter.. they also said about nappies , coffee uht milk and toiletries /banywipes before and tinned fruit /veg. I would imagine snacks are always good ...biscuits /choc bars /drinks things you can't afford to get as they are a luxury .

Coming up towards Xmas time, pretty much any lebkuchen from Lidl makes my OH happy. A short of chocolately, semi soft gingerbread in many varieties. The plain or dark chocolate large ones in circular discs around the size of the bottom of a mug are the best imo. Otherwise they can be a bit sickly sweet. Also, affordable.

(then he had to go and get a gluten intolerance and Lidl makes him sad at Xmas)

when we had to use a food bank near Christmas I actually cried when I found a jar of Harrods fig chutney in it. it meant a lot to me that someone obviously felt we deserved a little bit of something over the top and luxurious.
the same year, my work colleagues, knowing we were having a hard time (we were appealing my husbands long term disability benefit refusal) had a whip round, went to Lidl, and one of the girls told me "there HAD to be caviar. because fuck the government, you deserve caviar"

Probably better donated to a local cat rescue/adoption group or similar.

Off tangent but if you shop at Morrisons, more card holders are being offered a free pack of pampers nappies at the moment, worth activating the offer and adding one to your shop to just put in the food bank afterwards!

Not quite the same but I use any vouchers for period products then donate the items to hygiene banks in Boots stores.

It's a lovely thing to do, but take them along a month or so before the event they mark, so there is plenty of time for the foodbank to work out what they've got and plan distribution

Activating supermarket deals and donating the things you wouldn't use yourself is a great idea. I find myself giving the second half of a bogof quite a lot - which is quite often items that don't feature on the priority list but do add variety to the "add a couple of extra items" table

We give out pet food and are always short.

Razors aren’t allowed.

that's a really good idea! normally I'd just think, that deal doesn't apply to my needs, but in future, I'll consider if something I don't need or want is suitable for the food bank

Top of the range jam. Nice fancy biscuits and honey. Foot cream, lip balm, hand cream, face mask, hot oil treatment for hair, hand made rose scented soap. I'd put them in a little wash bag, because if you're living off a shoestring you'd not be able to afford those things and they make you feel so much better.

Last year I dropped off several gift sets of shower gel etc I received because I'm fussy and like to pick my own. The food bank were very happy to take them.

No ours does not accept alcohol. I just donate it to grandkids Xmas fayre at school if I don't want it. I won 2 bottles of whisky last year and I hate the stuff. I just donated it back to summer fairer at grandkids school for bottle stall or draw.

Yes, my local food banks takes pet food and put it on a table and people can take one item. I put 7 sachets of cat food in occasionally in a plastic bag. That counts as 1 item.

I think I'll put in a couple of those Marvel Goojitsu characters near Christmas and little kids cartons of long life orange juice. If that's allowed

Are we allowed to give toys and clothes to food banks ? Some people/ families will be freezing this winter. A few years back I was in this condition, in a temporary flat with no heating. It was so cold it hurt

Mine (community shop) has a charity shop and they do sell toys, they also have a 'take for free' basket. Every so often the open the big room up and put all the toys out for 50p.

They are also selling football kits at the moment, £2.50 for a top.

We don’t - we simply don’t have the storage space to branch out beyond food, toiletries and laundry/household cleaning stuff.

@AuntieStella yes, I start as soon as they appear in the shops, so that there's plenty of time to get them distributed. My friend works in a food bank so she gave me advice on what to give etc.

Lots of food banks accept pet food, and donations like this can mean families don't have to give away their dog/cat. Dogs Trust have a pet food bank but not everyone knows about it, so a bag of kibble or some tinned food could help someone keep their four-legged best friend.

@CrowleyKitten

one of the girls told me "there HAD to be caviar. because fuck the government, you deserve caviar"

That's had me in tears!

I was bawling my eyes out. that was such a kind gesture and it meant the world to me. they even got battery controlled fairylights and a big pack of batteries, as I'd mentioned how depressing it was having my tree up but not being able to afford to plug the lights in.