The volunteers tackling hunger in Harrogate

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Christmas is often associated with food - and lots of it - but for many local people, a proper meal is something of a luxury. 

Stuart Singleton and Dawn Cussons, warehouse manager and district manager at Harrogate District Foodbank respectively, along with their 90-strong team of volunteers, spend their days tackling hunger in the Harrogate area.

The Stray Ferret visited the food bank at Mowbray Community Church – one of the charity’s four locations – earlier this month to speak about the vital work the volunteers do to ensure people don’t go hungry.

The service was set up as an “emergency three-day package”, Dawn says, but demand has only increased since covid.

According to Stuart, there was enough food and drink to feed around 100 people over a three-day period when the Stray Ferret visited the food bank, but the continued need for this service is sobering. 

Stuart said:

The local service, which is part of Trussel Trust’s Foodbank Network, was set up in 2013. It’s a Christian organisation, but Dawn said it welcomes anyone in need, no matter their religious beliefs.

How does it work?

Harrogate District Foodbank, which operates weekly food banks in Harrogate, Starbeck, Jennyfields and Knaresborough, operates on a voucher-based model.

More than 140 agencies – including GPs, public services, schools, probation services, hospitals and community groups – can refer people in need to the charity. They are then given a voucher which entitles them to three visits to the foodbank over a six-month period.

“You name an agency in Harrogate, they can probably refer you to the foodbank”, Stuart said.

He added:

“We try to give them the support to get on their own feet and look after themselves”, Dawn said.

When clients arrive, they are met by warm and welcoming volunteers, who are not only there to help them collect the food, but to listen to and support them. 

Whilst enjoying a hot drink and biscuits, each client – whether they are a single person, a couple or a family – fills out a food checklist with a volunteer. That way, they have the freedom to choose their own shopping and ensure they are receiving foods they like. 

“People are actually getting things they want, rather than walking away with a mound of food they won’t eat”, Stuart adds.

But the charity does not just accept food donations, and is also in need of toiletries, feminine hygiene products, blankets, hot water bottles, cleaning equipment and carrier bags, for example. 

The charity wants to be viewed as a temporary service – “we are basically working to shut ourselves down”, Stuart joked – but strives to help people long-term.

‘If food banks had existed when I had a problem, I’d have been in them’

Stuart, now working full-time at the charity, was candid about his own struggle with addiction and homelessness.

He is a recovered heroin addict and spent several years grappling with substance abuse and homelessness. Stuart told the Stray Ferret:

The food bank is much more than it says on the tin: the charity’s Killinghall warehouse is linked to Horizon Life Training – a drug and alcohol recovery service for men – and encourages people who use the food bank to contact the rehabilitation services. It also offers those in recovery the chance to volunteer at the food bank.

It also directs people to a range of different support services and resources, which are pictured below.

‘I use the foodbank when I need it’

The Stray Ferret spoke to a client at the food bank, who wished to remain anonymous, about his reasons for using the service.

The man is a former alcoholic and drug addict, who slept rough around Harrogate for several months before landing himself behind bars. 

Now clean and with his own accommodation, the man relies on the food bank when money is tight. He said:

The man told the Stray Ferret if someone is in need, the volunteers at the foodbank are there to help:

“At the end of the day, it’s more like a community helping you here. Just use them if you need help”, the man adds.

To find out more about how to donate to the food bank and tackle hunger locally, click here.