To be really pissed off about my office's attitude towards our food bank donation

[LookingForAHandHold]

Every year we run an office collection for a local food bank. This year we're doing one for families with nothing and young children.

So far im the only one who has really donated. I understand times are tough, but it's £1 for a pack of biscuits in Iceland.

People are making horrible comments too, about the branded names etc and the ungrateful brats who don't deserve it. It's for young children. It just breaks my heart.

I'm so close to taking it all home and donating it myself

I think once the harvest collection suggested brands. Imagine how hard it is to look down and only see value items, so important for self esteem to have something a step up from basic/ value items. It was pretty offensive to lots of families who routinely buy value items week to week.

You really have no idea what people are donating elsewhere. Our school has one going with each class bringing a different item. So already bought multiple items for food banks as I have multiple children. Then the church do a collections, the girl guides etc etc

All the people on here defending hate speech and the verbal abuse of vulnerable families. Absolutely shocking you should be ashamed of yourselves

Yeah, wtaf?

I'd hate this. Pressure. Yabu. You have no idea of people personal situation. They shouldnt say what they say about children but maybe they feeling too much pressure.

Challenge the comments, but don't criticise them for not giving. If they are already donating to other causes, the costs do add up, even if they are only paying a few pounds to each one. It is alright saying that Iceland biscuits only cost £1 but that is not much consolation if someone has already reached the limit of what they can afford to donate and still have the christmas shop/presents for family to think about. Plus they may be having money troubles themselves. They may not be using a food bank but every £1 could be very much needed.

Times are hard for many people. I have donated to my usual charities, but I haven't been able to give as much as I usually do sadly.

@NantesElephant I didn’t just ‘pluck them from the daily mail’ thanks. It was a community food bank in the library I managed. The principal was that people who were struggling but might not meet the criteria for a food bank referral could come and help themselves anonymously.

In reality what happened was, primarily residents in our local hotel, used to come and take everything all in one go despite being provided three meals a day. I then had to ration it to putting out one of each item at a time to prevent what was essentially theft.

People chose who and where to support. I have no problem pitching in to a local food bank via the kids school.

I have previously not donated where the food parcels were going to a privately owned nursing home which I know pays £1,000 an hour to a London law firm for it's legal fees. It doesn't need the donations.

There's a food bank where my parents live that do no checks and my aunt, who recently took her whole family to Disney (think 18 people) and a 5 bedroom house and my aunt uses it "for extra free food". I've told her (and my Mum) I think it's outrageous and behaviour like that will put people off donating to charity.

Yes people might be struggling themselves but donating to charity is a choice not a professional obligation.

Your coworkers maybe are already doing their best, stop judging!

And? It's still not up to you to tell others how to live.

How could anyone possibly object to being told that they must donate to a charity of their employer's choosing?

I am sorry this has turned in to such a horrible experience OP, when you were trying to do a good thing.
You sound amazing. Your colleagues sound awful (for making cruel comments).
I hope you don’t lose your generous spirit, it makes the world a better place.

who are you to decide that their money is best spent elsewhere, the entitlement to dictate how they should spend their cash, what charity they should support.

So they get a takeaway instead of a pack of biscuits for the donation, how is that of your business? For all you know, these colleagues donate £100 a month in other ways. Its non of your business.

And if they don't, that's on them, that's their business.

Donate as you wish 🤞

Housing benefit no longer covers rent. Council tax benefit has been scaled back. Energy companies will only work with struggling customers, to an extent. People on benefits never used to have to pay water rates. Then there's travel costs (more and more primary children can't get places within walking distance), then clothes/uniform/shoes/winter coat. When you first lose a job/become disabled, there's a wait. On your leaflet from the DWP are phone numbers for food banks and energy help, then you are left to it.
The gig economy means that women are being sacked during pregnancy and don't have maternity pay. SS won't help to elevate poverty. It's actually written in the children's act. Contentious, but asylum seekers don't get enough to live on without charity help.
I could never get my head around people thinking that it was ok for the children of the UK to be malnourished if it wasn't for charity provision. But they did, when they voted Tory.

The comments from colleagues are terrible, but you don't know what/who people are supporting privately. I used to buy a monthly travel pass and shopping for a LP family member. We still have family members who we buy children's clothes/activities for. I occasionally give to local animal charities (including pet food banks). People have friends/neighbours die and give. I'm currently involved in assistance dogs for autism/MH, which I absolutely don't talk about because I'm not interested in people's opinions. When you cook seven days a week and sort everyone else out, often a meal deal is your one treat. You won't get that OP, because of your age and living at home.

Are the comments really that awful though? I would probably mutter under my breath (not to them of course) that my own children were ungrateful brats if they started demanding brand names.

So in other words it wasn’t a proper food bank - just an ill thought out local scheme. I wouldn’t donate to that either.

I'd say calling homeless kids brats because the organisation set up to help them asked for treats is pretty bad

I stopped the shoe box thing after discovering that they used the boxes as a way of shoving religion down little kids throats.

Apart from the horrible comments made by other staff members, you can't say anything more than you have already OP. One email is enough.

Maybe have a read of the recent post that someone put up here about being harangued by a staff member to donate to this women's daughters charity holiday trip to Namibia (or somewhere similar) and who shamed people when they wouldn't give money. Don't be her!

You didn't say treats though, nor did the poster. You're quite the unreliable narrator to be honest. I still err towards your previously generous colleagues not revelling in homeless children being hungry.