Food bank app that started in Essex says donations are falling
BanktheFood was thought up in a school in Southend
An app which started in Southend, and pings users a list of items urgently needed from nearby food banks as they arrive at their local supermarket, says donations are falling due to the cost-of-living crisis.
How did it start?
The idea for BanktheFood came from a group of children at Thorpe Hall School who, whilst working with Southend Foodbank, suggested there should be an app to help shoppers donated the most needed items.
Dan Owen, from Burnham-on-Crouch, then developed the app with a team from his company, Mustard New Media.
BanktheFood, which is now used worldwide, is now appealing for people to get to grips with what their local food banks really need as donations fall.
97% of food banks reported increased demand
Co-Founder Emma Spring said: "We speak to food banks daily, but we've never actually done a survey to see exactly what's going on. So, we did a survey and the results were quite shocking, but not particularly unexpected.
"92% of the food banks that we surveyed said they've got concerns about their ability to continue to support (people) and 97% of food banks reported an increase in demand."
More public sector workers
According to Emma, the demographic of food bank users is also changing: "They (food banks) said they're seeing a lot more public sector workers, particularly nurses and teachers, coming through their doors and seeking support at the moment.
"43% of food banks said they're seeing more nurses coming through their doors and 19% said they're seeing more teachers", she said.
The charity is now calling on people to donate when they can and be strategic with what they buy in order to have the most impact.