Trussell Trust hoping to reduce stigma of food bank usage with new competition
They were inspired by a poem by an anonymous mum
Salisbury based charity the Trussell Trust have launched a new competition in order to spread the word about a 'Hunger-Free Future' in the UK.
They're asking school children, aged 9 and under, to write a short poem about hunger and what it means to them.
The winning 20 entries will then appear in a book of poetry by children, and one winner will win a star prize of having their character made up into a Trussell Trust campaign.
It was inspired by a poem written by an anonymous mother, after she was judged for needing to use a food bank to feed her child.
Explaining how she cannot afford to feed herself and her young child, it includes the line: "I needed free food because I didn't have enough money, I didn't have enough food in my child's tummy".
The food bank charity turned it into a short film, with the poem being read by volunteers and food bank staff.
They hope the poems written by children will help reduce the stigma surrounding people using food banks.
CONVERSATIONS ARE IMPORTANT
This competition and the 'Hunger-Free Future' campaign have received some celebrity backing as well.
Making up some of the judging panel are actress Tamzin Outhwaite, comedian Dom Joly and musician and celebrity chef Levi Roots.
Tamzin, who played Mel Owen in Eastenders, told Greatest Hits Radio that it's important we are talking to the next generation about food banks and why people use them:
"What will be exciting is seeing how honest children aged nine and under approach the poems as children can only be honest really, so it will be lovely to see. I might see if I can get my 8 year old involved because over the last year when we've been in the car and anytime we've driven past a food bank and there's been a line outside we've had a conversation about it and it's been out there and I think it has been quite normalised so it will be lovely to see how children view it.
We are getting rid of the stigma but we are still asking that question, which needs to be asked, is it acceptable? We are the fifth richest country in the world and the need for food banks is growing, there are 1300 of them in the UK so it does feel like, although we're normalising it, it doesn't seem to be an acceptable thing to be happening right now."
Children can submit entries up until the end of May, with all the details on how to get involved on the Trussell Trust website.
BIG INCREASE IN DEMAND
It was announced at the end of April that the charity had seen demand soar over the last year due to the pandemic.
From April 2020 to March 2021, they gave out a record 2.5 million emergency food parcels, an increase of 33% on the previous 12 months.
Emma Revie, chief executive of the Trussell Trust, said:
"These figures are really shocking, we've seen year on year increases on demand for food parcels with more and more people finding themselves having to come to a food bank. The reasons why people are using food banks and largely unchanged, that is because people find themselves in a situation where they don't have enough money for the essentials and in many instances that's where people have experienced the loss of a job or become too unwell to work or living with issues like having a disability or being a single parent, the money they are receiving from social security is just not enough to cover the cost of essentials. After a difficult I'm very proud of the volunteers and everyone working in food banks across the country.
No one should face the indignity of needing emergency food. Yet our network of food banks has given out record numbers of food parcels as more and more people struggle without enough money for the essentials. This is not right but we know we can build a better future. This pandemic has shown the unexpected can hit suddenly, but we know when we push for change, united by our desire for justice and compassion, the government has to listen and act.
We are asking you, the public, to write to your local candidates standing for election on 6 May, asking them to commit to working to end the need for food banks if elected. Together we can take action now to build a hunger free future."