January can be a draining month for some people, often leading to longer than usual queues at Sandwell Food Banks and Pantries. Together with the ongoing impact of the pandemic, this in turn can have a draining effect on staff, volunteers and supplies at these much-needed hubs.
That’s why we’re throwing a spotlight on this vital service between January 26th and 31st, to not only bring attention to the ongoing need for support from the general public and business sector, but also to celebrate the incredible work they do.
Janine and Sarah at Smethwick Food Bank organise support in the form of three-day food and essentials parcels for 160 nearby households every week. Part of the Trussell Trust and Sandwell Food Banks networks, they prioritise signposting their beneficiaries to services which can help move them on from needing the Food Bank in the future. But that doesn’t alter the fact that they need food…today.
“Some days it’s like a domino effect if our volunteers can’t come in for whatever reason,” said Janine. “One gets ill, then another tests positive, then another has a family crisis – we end up without help and we miss them so much.
“Even if people can’t commit to helping us regularly it would be great to have a few ‘back up’ volunteers we can call in from time to time to help out.”
Our campaign at the end of the month aims to raise awareness of such opportunities, listed on our volunteering web site www.letsgosandwell.info as well as encouraging residents, and businesses, to donate what they can to their local hub.
To promote your opportunities and get involved in the campaign email kim@scvo.info
#HelpFeedSandwell
A few spaces are available for our Introduction to Youth Mentoring course taking place in January 2022.
Do you have an interest in supporting a diverse group of people in your local area to live independently and build the life they want?
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Ingeus is a government project to help people back into work who have been affected by COVID 19. Since 2002, the employment service has helped find meaningful jobs for over 400,000 people. Ingeus is looking for partners able to assist them with voluntary work placements and job opportunities in all sectors, including administration, retail, hospitality, cleaning, warehousing, industrial, care, customer service.
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