To think that all these people giving away food, are misguided

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So, there's a proliferation of people on the local Facebook groups, making packed lunches, buying extra food, putting food out the front of their house for free collection etc. And telling people to collect it, no questions asked, or of they need it delivered, just PM them etc. And people are volunteering to deliver food etc

It's all done with the intention to help others that might be struggling to feed their kids etc

Now, whilst I appreciate the intention is to help others, AIBU to think that actually it doesn't help in the long run?

Surely, the food/money/items would be better given to food banks or similar, as that way local authorities/GPs/care teams etc, can actually provide the help and support these vulnerable people and families need? Potentially there's poverty going "under the radar" if people bypass the systems in place to help them, and that will address the underlying issues that are causing their kids to go without food/heating/whatever.

@Givemeabreak88 was that on PP? I saw that too.

@SpiderinaWingMirror

Anybody trying to help others access food should be applauded. Not labelled as misguided. Some of the stuff I have seen recently on social media looks good and practical. Like people leaving extra/spare coats on a specific bridge and anyone who can use one helps themselves. That's brilliant that is. I think direct giving has its place.

Oh, is that a thing?

Normally there's a winter coat collection at major London stations but as I don't go in now, I don't know what happened this year.

A month or two into the first lockdown, a well meaning neighbour put a cupboard on our road to be filled with donated food. Anyone could take from it, or add to it, but another neighbour removed it because it attracted rats.

Our local food bank help families out of the situation that led to them needing a food bank in the first place so are a better option in my opinion.

Don't you have better things to worry about than trying to police what people want to do with their free time/money and their charitable giving?

@SatishTheCat

Our local food bank help families out of the situation that led to them needing a food bank in the first place so are a better option in my opinion.

They are very good but you might need a sandwich while getting it sorted.

The authorities mentioned by the OP are overwhelmingly busy at the moment.

I don't like the hodge-podge of philanthropy and charity that is replacing our welfare state, because it seems patchy and is too easy for people to get missed. But I am a die hard socialist and have studied social history and the history of the welfare state. It is just a bit shit really when austerity was ideological and had a lot of families living on the edge of destitution and hunger before covid even hit. Yes obviously we can except a recession post Brexit and because of covid, but austerity policies had made us really vulnerable.

You know buying someone a hot drink in the day to keep them warm in the depths of winter isn't going to stop them accessing the homeless shelter at night don't you?
Most shelters are 'night' shelters so they can only be there at night. They are closed in the day (and if there are day centres or homeless cafes they are often only open for a couple of hours a day, or a couple of days a week).
Of course donate to the shelters but don't begrudge the people at the side of the road for 12 hours a day a hot drink. It's human kindness and acknowledges them as fellow humans. And warms them up in the perishing weather, hypothermia is a real risk for the homeless.

@LunaHeather

OP "Better to donate that £2 to the shelter imo"

But having seen first hand the money that gets wasted in large charities, I am not keen to donate to those.

There is a local day centre, or there was, who would take toiletries and things, I do that too. I won't comment on Shelter specifically but large charities don't fill me with confidence.

How do the charities waste it?

(Not doubting, just curious)

I think it's a nice gesture (whether altruistic or done for likes!) and a kind idea.

I have voted YABU because I think there's a significant proportion of people who sadly face barriers of shame and guilt when it comes to using food banks. Accepting food anonymously, kindly and freely given, from a neighbour can make receiving help more accessible to some.

And who knows, even if someone is doing it for likes initially, maybe they might catch the warm glow and want to help more sincerely next time And food in the belly is food in the belly wherever it comes from.

WitchesGlove I am only one person but from what I have seen..

Frequent meetings at very costly venues, even just internal senior manager meetings. No potential donor to impress, just they would rather have their meeting in the posh venue with posh food than the cheaper venue. That's after you get past the "we want to be off the premises so we can really concentrate" when the large internal meeting rooms weren't booked up.

"Training" provided by consultants who charge exorbitant prices and just happen to be mates with the CEO. £500 a day per person to tease out blue sky thinking.

New computer systems - ditto

Newly refurbished offices when the offices were perfectly fine. In fact, everyone also got brand new chairs which the CEO thought looked trendy. They did, but they completely ignored the fact that a) some people have back problems and b) one size doesn't fit all.

Taking up and ignoring the results of psychometric tests for interview - why use them and override them when they say "this person cannot see the point of view of others" and then be astonished when you have to rehire because....that recruit couldn't see the POV of others? Again,expensive, and if you're not using the results...probably that company is run by a mate.

Taxis, a lot of them.

Moving away from my personal experiences - who even knows where Kids Company money went?M Why did the National Hereditary Breast Cancer Helpline allocate their dough as shown here?

www.channel4.com/news/factcheck/how-much-charities-spend-good-causes

@ElectraBlue

Don't you have better things to worry about than trying to police what people want to do with their free time/money and their charitable giving?

Don't you have better things to worry about than trying to police what people do with their free time on the internet?

It does need to be publicised though. You can't very well offer to deliver food to the needy without anyone knowing. And Facebook groups tend to be mostly used by the lower end of society, at least in my area. So it's probably a fairly effective way of getting the word out. Plus from what I've seen locally it tends to be the people living on the council estate that are offering help , probably to their own neighbours, via these messages. Middle class people are more likely to give through organised church groups or community cafes. We don't really have street homeless round here but I'm sure there are plenty of families fallen on hard times.
I agree that giving sandwiches to homeless drug addicts that you never see again and who have no access to other services is unlikely to be helpful but free food given within the community is possibly more positive. Most of these families are already receiving benefits and have some kind of roof, and genuinely will benefit from short term help in the way of food.

"homeless drug addicts that you never see again "

I can't be the only person on this thread who knew the homeless people near work pretty well? They used to joke they got most of their food from our company!

Re Facebook, apologies, I withdraw my comments. I can see it could be useful and not about people wanting praise.

@SnackSizeRaisin

I had to laugh at your post. Only the lower classes use Facebook groups?!
I'm part of a very successful local community Facebook group entirely devoted to supporting others. All others. Not everyone that needs help lives on a council estate. Sometimes you give and sometimes you receive. And a good deal of our members are 'middle class'.

The problem of Hunger runs deep. If you are working low hours on a low wage but high rent, you can’t take a day off work to try get a food bank voucher then trek somewhere for the 3h it is open on the one afternoon a week to pick it up. No you just carry on.

You may be lucky enough to have a £500 overdraft that you can never get out of but no you are not starving. Local groups under the extra stress of covid can reach far more people. It may not mean they would literally have nothing else to eat but could mean they are not spending £30 a week on food and can put it to something else.

I’m sure in 6m and covid is less of an issue that these sort of things will filter out and there will be still be people who need help. Can’t begrudge them in the mean time