Should I use a food bank in my situation?

[Lionking1981]

I am 200 pounds down on my normal wages this month due to taking unpaid parental leave when my Dd was ill. Overspent the first week of the month trying to occupy the kids. Then my oven broke and had to replace it. Been living out the freezer and store cupboard since. To cut the story short, I now have 30 pounds to survive 10 days til payday. I have 3 small joints of lamb in the freezer, a box
of waffles and some fish fingers. A few tins of baked beans, tomatoes and soup in cupboard.

My friend says to go to the foodbank but I am super uncomfortable about it. We earn over 40k between us and i don't think food banks are there for people like us but it is going to be really hard to feed a family of 4 on this. However, we will be fine next month. Would you just make do for the 10 days?

Not everyone has credit cards, they're expensive to run

Are they? I make over £100 a year off mine.

Not when used correctly. It's an interest free loan provided you repay it in full every month.

Which not everyone can afford to do.

Garden mint flower "£20k each isn't a fortune". I wouldn't have thought it was food banks type poverty, either.

And I will still donate and won't let people like op put me off. I'll donate this week never thought about them being used lots more in the summer holidays. There's some real suffering out there and you wouldn't know it to look at someone.

Volunteered at a homeless shelter really opens your eyes. One of the girls was up early to wash and do her make up. You would never of looked at her and thought she was homeless and hungry.

I think it's very sad that so many are unwilling to help, until someone is in deep poverty, rather than when they hit a short term difficulty. If I give to a charity I don't then mull over wether or not the person that receives it deserves it. What is so wrong about helping those who need temporary help, if you can afford to? If you spend too long thinking about any charity, then you'd never give. If you're willing to stop giving to a food bank, because of the op, or someone on here has told a story about someone taking the piss, then shame on you.

ridingwind but if no one gave a reason for why the OP should not use the foodbank (your moralising) how would anyone ever get a sense of perspective or work out why they should or should not do something. The problems is the OP's friend, but also the OP for even having to double check.

If your local foodbank threw away food that is a disgrace as it could easily ahve been given to homeless shelters or someone, anyone not thrown away. It sounds unbelieveable.

No, I agree yorkshire but a lot of posters said op earned £40,000 a year and I don't think that she does.

Lidl spagetti-20p
lidl tinned tomatoes -20p
uht milk- cheaper
Lidl smart price rice - 40p
lentils for dhal
cheese- 1. 50 Lidl
Smart price beans-20p

If people in worse financial situations than the OP are donating food they are going to be pissed of when reading this type of thread.

Just eat cheap food from Aldi or Lidl - you are hardly the type of claimant that most people expect to receive their food bank donations.

I would rather run the risk of donating and someone taking advantage of the food bank than not donate and run the risk of someone going hungry tbh.

You don't need to go to a food bank. I thought you had to be referred by a doctor or social worker before you could use a food bank. You can make that stretch ten days if you use up what is in your cupboards and freezer.

Ridingwindhorses I find people taking limited resources that they don't really need from people who do really need them distasteful, tbh.
People who work in or with food banks have repeatedly said on this thread that demand goes up at this time of year, due to children not receiving free school meals. Someone using food banks when they have money and food in their freezer is taking food from them.
Not only that but many of the people who donate are not necessarily well off themselves. They may make sacrifices themselves to donate, on the understanding that it's for people who really need them. People who would hungry without them.

I agree areyou, however it's still an interesting topic, as it can show people's attitude and opinion to the rights and wrongs of food bank usage. I suppose I'm judging differently as the food bank near me is well stocked and maybe the truely starving poor people is not as numerous. I can understand why others feel differently, depending on the level of poverty in their area. I'm aware that seems contrary, but isn't that the point of discussion.

But povertypain the OP doesn't really need any help. She is a bit short for 10 days after overspending by her own admission on entertaining her kids, but she has food in the freezer and some cash.

No one is suffering. She isn't at risk of losing her home, being behind on rent, missing a payment or anything else. The family will just be eating differently for 10 days (I can't really see an issue with eating fish fingers,lamb and lentils and pasta etc) She is not in hardship and does not need help! She just needs to budget a bit. Why can't you see that? No one is talking about denyng help to those who need it.

Lots of good advice on here, OP. I think you'll be able to manage up to pay day without using a food bank. The worst that can happen is that you'll end up with a very small overdraft, which is no problem as it's a temporary cash flow issue. I'm assuming that you won't need any more unpaid leave?

Thanks all. I am not going to use the food bank. Was just wondering really about the criteria. Can this be deleted please? I don't want this thread to put anyone off donating to food banks.

witchend as others have said, truly heartbreaking. People like you who give their time and care are wonderful.
quercuscircus I see your point of view regarding those truly, desperately in need as in witchend's post, but I think you chastising me and my choice to offer help to someone is a bit off: It's my decision.
. I work in a school with huge levels of poverty, so see it first hand on a daily basis. ALL big cities in the UK have kids who have it tough, not just here. I hope you weren't insinuating that Glasgow is this pit of deprivation and relying on that old, 1920's stereotype of ' No Mean City' steeped in poverty? Have you been and compared our poverty with London, Newcastle, Manchester, Liverpool, Bristol, Belfast, Leeds, Sheffield, Birmingham, Cardiff, Edinburgh or are you just falling back on an age, old stereotype like lots of others do?
As a school we help the community enormously with food and support for those in need. My offer to the OP was with this knowledge and background, purely magnanimous and shouldn't be something that you need to call me out on.

@malificent7 not everyone lives near a lidl though

It's alright lionking , you're in a tight spot and your friend suggested it. Totally reasonable question to ask.

OP I think you have to report your own thread to have it deleted.

Don't worry, op. You've done nothing wrong in asking. It's opened up a very interesting discussion and FB discussions always go this way. 😁 I do hope you can put a bit away each month for emergencies. Maybe this thread will encourage you to donate when things improve. By the way, it doesn't have to be a lot. Even a tin of food or a packet of bickies, now and again. The individually wrapped bickies are best, though, as they will stay fresh if being stretched out.

I just find it impossible to understand how anyone would interpret the OP's situation as "being in need".

I find it staggering that, unlike the OP, people can be in real actual proper dire straits month after month, and for those people help is so incredibly hard to come by.