The Foodbank opened in November 2011 when a member of our church who was the receptionist at the Social Work office, who was a member of our church, mentioned to the Deacons Court that there were people around locally who were asking where they could get food. This situation was put to the congregation who agreed to donate. The initial donations were made by members of the congregation, but the demand began to grow steadily, to the point where we give away up to 30 bags of essential, non-perishable, foodstuffs twice a week.
The food and monetary donations we currently receive are from several churches and individuals who donate monthly. Tesco give us food that would be going to landfill but don’t support us financially, although they have in the past given donations from their community fund.
Our minister, Susan Henderson with some of the Foodbank Volunteers.
As an independent foodbank, we do not have referrals from social work agencies, but have requests coming by word of mouth and the banner permanently displayed outside our church. We have set up our own rules for eligibility. We now are open on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 10.00 – 12.00. Alongside the Foodbank we also run a café, called the Wee Blether café, from 10.00 until 11.30, to which everyone is welcome. We have just registered with the charity Neighbourly, a charity that connects businesses with thousands of vetted local charities.