As many of you will be aware we moved to our temporary premises at Turnberrie’s at the end of May whilst building work progresses at Thornbury Baptist Church. We are so grateful for the support we have received from Turnberrie’s and all the lovely volunteers who helped with the move, making it such a smooth operation.
The number of clients coming to us continues to remain fairly consistent. From 1 January to 30 June 2024, we fed 312 adults and 203 children. We issued 5.5 tonnes of food and other essentials, and received 5.1 tonnes of donations. Compared with the same period last year, number of adults fed is down by 24%, whilst the number of children fed is down by 38%, which is always a good sign. Food and essential items given out is 31% higher whilst donations received are 11% less. This is indicative of continued cost of living issues, and results in us drawing more stock from North Bristol.
Your generous financial donations enable us to buy fresh fruit, vegetables, cheese, bread, spread, baby milk and nappies and some essentials when our stocks are low. We are also grateful to Daggs Allotment as we begin to receive their excess produce.
For those who attend their appointments on a Friday afternoon, our volunteers are able to discuss other ways we, and other organisations, can help them. For example, our Citizens Advice support has been effective in helping clients with advice and giving them access to local funding. We also refer clients to Warm & Well, part of the Severn Wye charity, who can help with advice and support especially relating to fuel emergencies. Representatives from other organisations also come into the afternoon session, and are available to discuss issues with clients, should they wish to do so. Skills Connect is the most recent visitor, who can help with getting back to work issues.
We continue to be most grateful for the support we receive from local businesses as well as individuals, schools, churches and organisations, both financially and with donations. We are always more than happy to share more with you about our work. Please contact us if you would like us to do so.
We are very grateful to all our faithful volunteers for their support and hard work which they do so enthusiastically, whether they pack parcels, speak to clients, deliver parcels or collect food from our donation points.
Always in the hope that we can look forward to the time when foodbanks are no longer needed!
In the meantime, we are so glad to be here to help those in need and again on behalf of all of those benefitting from your kindness, generosity and concern we want to thank you again for making life a little easier for those in need. We couldn’t do it without your support.
Wishing you all continued health, peace and hope in the coming days.
Mair Vaughan, on behalf of Thornbury Foodbank Management Team
The foodbank provides emergency meals for 3 days to people in short term crisis.
Click here to read our 2023 end of year update, issued in January 2024.
The crisis can be the result of problems such as benefit delay/withdrawal, separation, unexpected bills, debt, bereavement or redundancy.
It's a service for local people in short term difficulties, to remove the worry of feeding their families while problems are sorted out.
The Thornbury outlet is a Thornbury Churches Together initiative, with volunteers from all Thornbury's churches running it and donating food.
The North Bristol Foodbank is part of The Trussell Trust's UK wide foodbank network.
For more information about the North Bristol and South Glos Foodbank, please call 0117 472 5172, email or visit nbsg.foodbank.org.uk.
To access emergency food support from the local foodbank in South Glos, you will need to be referred by a frontline professional support service (those who work in the health and social care bracket).
If you are not sure who to contact or this is the first time you have needed a voucher for Foodbank please contact:
You can also be referred via your GP or local Health Centre and a Housing Officer, Support Worker or Social Worker.
Click here to see the latest Shopping List.
You can drop off donations in the crate behind the tills at Tesco or on the Thornbury Baptist Church steps on Fridays between 9.00 and 11.00am.
Food is collected by churches, schools, businesses, other groups and from the public by collecting outside supermarkets.
The food is sorted by type and date and stored ready for use.
Care professionals allocate vouchers to people they encounter at work who need food.
Vouchers are issued online and sent to North Bristol Foodbank electronically. We receive those for clients in our area and the client is texted an appointment time between 1.30 and 4pm on a Friday at Thornbury Baptist Church.
While the parcel is prepared, trained staff talk to the client to see how else they can help, e.g. with debt advice or by liaising with official agencies.
This is a typical example of a client:
If, twelve months ago, someone had told me that I’d be relying on a Foodbank to feed me, I would have laughed at them; life was going swimmingly.
Then, out of a clear blue sky, I found myself handed a series of events that were both unexpected and out of my control. I found my income cut off with, sadly, my financial commitments remaining. Before I knew it, I had mere pennies in my bank account and no food in my fridge.
Whilst I’d assumed that the welfare state that I’d paid into for years would help me, I found that I’d been pretty much hung out to dry. Every Government and Local Authority avenue I tried proved to be hopeless. Quite simply there was nothing available in the system for people like me.
By the time I found the foodbank, I hadn’t eaten for three days and I was desperate.
If I’m honest, there’s far more embarrassment than pleasure having to go cap-in-hand to a food charity. That said, they treated me with understanding, compassion and moreover, like a human being.
