A COMMUNITY project set up to help families struggling to feed their children during the covid pandemic has marked its third anniversary by seeing demand for its services soar.
Members of the Woodley Lunch Bunch said they thought the project would close once lockdowns had ended and people returned to work. But instead, they have been looking for more volunteers to come forward and, at one point, they had a waiting list of people who needed support but couldn’t receive it.
It operates a packed lunch delivery service to children in the RG5 postcode area during the school holidays. Support is for families who are having a difficult time financially, or in other ways. It also delivers activity packs, toiletry/hygiene parcels and food packages when appropriate.
The group have become a registered charity, and has nearly 180 children on its books. It is also seeing demand continue to increase as more families are affected by the cost of living crisis: high inflation, rising mortgages, and an increase in the fuel price cap have created more people who are struggling after previously just about managing to balance their books.
Juliet Sherratt, who helps run the group, said: “We thought we were going to be making lunches for six weeks, as we responded to the covid crisis. But the crisis hasn’t really gone away in terms of its knock-on effects and the cost of living crisis, the fuel crisis and so on. People are still needing support, so we’ve just carried on.”
While the core offering remains of lunches during school holidays – when pupils are not receiving free school meals – Ms Sherratt says the charity has adapted within the limits of its remit.
“With the fuel crisis, we gave out vouchers to help through that,” she explained. “We collaborated with First Days Children’s Charity and Share Wokingham to help with things like heated blankets and dehumidifiers to help combat the damp that people are fighting their homes, and to help them keep warm.”
Other changes have come as lockdown eased and furlough schemes ended, with volunteers returning to work. These changes helped create a waiting list of families needing support – something that has since been rectified.
“We did have 10 families waiting at one point,” Ms Sherratt said. “We were really not comfortable with that as (providing lunches) is such a basic need.
“We did get those families off the waiting list, but we have a limited capacity with the space, the volunteers and the time we have. We are at maximum capacity.”
Fellow volunteer Shirley Boyt said: “We thought our capacity would be 150 children, we’ve gone way past that and are now helping 180. I’m sure there will be more coming onto the waiting list sooner or later.
“It used to be that we’d lose people and replace them from people in the waiting list but now people are in crisis the whole time. It’s chronic. It’s not a temporary thing anymore. Benefits haven’t gone up in line with food and fuel inflation.
“People who are dependent on benefits for whatever reason are out of pocket. Prices are going yp, benefits are staying the same. They are fighting a losing battle. Lots of people have debts to fuel companies, and are just struggling to pay basic living costs.”
Ms Sharratt said one of the best ways people can help is by responding to their shopping lists for donations, which includes tins of hot dogs, tinned tomato or chicken soup, fruit pots, raisins and mini-biscuits.
They can be donated at a range of venues including Christ Church in Crockhamwell Road on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 10am to 1pm.
Items can also be left at Blossom Beauty Room, on Loddon Bridge Road, and Woodley Pre-School in Woodford Park.
The charity also welcomes cash donations to help fund its work and a GoFundMe link is on its website.
She also wants people who need help not to feel embarrassed about asking. Details are on its website.
The charity also received a five-star food hygiene rating – the highest possible – when it was inspected in the summer.
For more details, to ask for help, or to give help, log on to: www.woodleylunchbunch.org
