To think food banks aren’t fit for purpose

[ForFirmBiscuit]

I don’t need to use a food bank but when I did they gave me tins of soup, a small tin of meat pie, a litre of UHT and a small bag of oats, nothing fresh. I didn’t get much and I was really hungry as there wasn’t enough calories and it was insubstantial. It gave me loads of anxiety to be so hungry. It’s always been like that.
I think food banks should be supplied by the council and given proper budgets for good food, even if they made batches of soup themselves to give out it would be more filling than a tin of soup

I don't think the councils run food banks near me, if that's what you mean. They're run by charities and churches.

I waited 6 months!

If someone can't afford basic housing costs then they can claim the housing element of UC, even if they're earning. Admittedly it doesn't cover the entire cost of a one bedroom flat until you're over 35 (unless you get PIP for care, or in a few other circumstances.)

So do you now donate to the food bank to help bulk out the packages that others get? I donate £3 - £5 per week in toiletries and food and have for years but hearing you moan that people like myself are not giving enough of our hard earned money to feed people in need is a real middle finger in my face.
Times are hard for everyone and the food bank is an emergency food charity for getting you through a few days it's not run by cooks and people who are able to rustle up a meal like you ask you are talking about a soup kitchen and I'm sure you would have been welcome at one if that's what you needed.

This has made me think if I donate again I should donate things like the tinned Heinz macaroni and oranges instead of soup or tinned peas. @MarlaSingersMiddleFinger I don't think that's what the OP is doing rather she is saying the food bank isn't giving enough suitable food and that it shouldn't be a replacement for government support

They are saying there wasn't enough and complaining that they should have been given a home made soup!
The food bank is not something that needs improving its something that should not be needed at all and we need to work as a society to get to a place that it is no longer needed (remember this when voting!)
If it helps I always try and give tins that don't need a tin opener and something that's a meal rather than part of a meal so something like a beef stew or ravioli or perhaps one of the big soups. I also often give tea, coffee or hot chocolate so people can warm up easily also breakfast bars and UHT milk. These are things that were most required when I used to volunteer at my local food bank.
None of this takes away from if you want a soup kitchen they are available in most towns and most churches hold a meal for people in need which will have been cooked lovelingly be someone and Sikh temples will happily feed anyone a nutritious and beautifully prepared vegi meal.

Yes but it is needed and if you were hungry you would also be feeling miserable, sorry for yourself and naturally want more food I’ll say it again this isn’t Oliver twist and I think funding should come from somewhere so that food parcels can be substantial enough. I was greatful for anything I got of course but I simply didn’t want to go hungry

Op I'm sorry you were in that situation. But surely your issue should be with the government not supporting you enough/your job not paying enough rather than the charity/volunteers not giving you a big enough food parcel?

The food bank is not something that needs improving its something that should not be needed at all and we need to work as a society to get to a place that it is no longer needed (remember this when voting!)

YY, charity funded rape crisis centres shouldn’t be needed and men need to get their shit together.

However, in the meantime, until rape and hunger no longer exist- what is wrong with asking for better food banks or better rape crisis centres? when they do need improvement.

When you ask for "better" charity, who are you asking?

A genuine question- who is the OP asking to improve food banks? Presumably not the volunteers, who can only give out what they've got. I really hope not the people who donate, who are already being generous & doing their best.

By all means, argue that benefits/gov support should be better, but to ask for better charity is so entitled & ultimately fruitless.

A charity is a not for profit business, there are paid managers and organisers who should be maximising donations for best impact on the need and engaged in fund raising.

Asking for a charity to be run better and provide better service isn’t entitled. We need to get away from the beggars can’t be choosers classist mentality.

@ForFirmBiscuit stop paying for Internet and/or mobile phone data and then you'd have plenty more choice.

5 or so years ago I was in tears at the food bank parcel I received. It had toilet roll! Someone had kindly put a gift in of mini soaps for DD. I'd lost over a stone in a few weeks making sure she ate.
Of course everything wasn't to our liking, but can't pick and choose.
Also, I suspect you don't know the meaning of hunger.
Stop taking food from that actually need it. Give up your phone and Internet connection and spend 30 quid on food that suits you.
A tin of soup is a good 500cals BTW. Add 1 slice of bread...

IDK what soup you are referring to but 500 cals is a lot for a soup. The average soup is well under 250 maybe. This one for example Sainsbury's Vegetable Soup 400g | Sainsbury's (sainsburys.co.uk) A classic vegetable soup, is 168. Soup is mostly water so it's usually fairly low calorie. That's why people eat it on diets.

There probably are enough calories in the average food bank parcel though, soup isn't the bulk of it, there are a lot of oats, pasta etc. It's just not very exciting.

YY the lentil and smoked bacon soup I like is 196 calories for entire soup tin.

Great idea. Cut off the internet so you cannot see or reply to comments on your UC journal or apply for any/better jobs. Getting sanctioned will help you enormously, and you definitely will not starve to death like a few others who were sanctioned.

That's ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous!!!

Some charities are entirely voluntary others are NFP.
NFP charge for their services. Charity gives their services for free.

It’s not that simple really. A charity is a not for profit business and they can provide their assistance for free or for a charge.

Even a charity staffed entirely by volunteers can charge a fee or not. A charity with paid staff is still a charity- look at National Trust the biggest charity in the country. It’s not been relabelled an NFP.

There isn’t a rule of if it’s an entirely voluntary charity, then the assistance must be for free.

That's not true lots of charities take a donation or have a membership scheme so the charity can actually run especially small community charities like foodbanks .

@SugarandSpiceandAllThingsNaice

Ok, so OP / you are criticising the management of the food bank? The Trussel Trust near us employs one part time lady who does her best, but she runs 3 centres each opening 2x a week. Everyone else is a volunteer doing their best (but apparently not good enough!).

Many food banks are exclusively run by volunteers. It's actually disgusting that you're suggesting they should be held accountable like businesses! It's out of the goodness of their hearts. People will simply stop donating & volunteering if those who are supposedly desperate are choosy & critical.

Your mentality is entitled. Beggars can't be choosers. That's not classist. It's life. You're not owed anything by volunteers (including food you prefer). Criticise the government if you want, but this attitude is ridiculous

But it's utterly awful that this is what's happening. Let the plebs quarrel amongst themselves etc. it really is the modern equivalent of let them eat cake! The focus should be on ensuring people can survive on benefits. Helping them into employment where appropriate. But not leaving it all to food banks.

@DanielGault entirely agree. I think arguing about what volunteers provide is horrible.

Discussion around government, wages, benefits, economy etc- yes.

Debating whether the charity of people who have no obligation to provide anything is up to an acceptable standard - no.

No having food banks creates the need for food banks

So sorry you had to go through this but also thank you for your input I suspect you are correct about the OP they don't have a clue

Oh, I thought I mentioned I needed the food bank a while ago. Not now. Back then I only had the outfit I was wearing and £10 to my name, and didn’t have data or internet