Minutes:
Robin is the CEO of the Hope Centre, a not-for-profit anti-poverty charity which provides practical services to help people survive poverty and exclusion. Their aims include campaign for change in the industry (food and fuel poverty/sustainability), and feeding people.
Food banks did not exist in
2000 although there was food poverty previously. Soup kitchens have
been around a long time for the most destitute, longer in USA due
to no welfare system. The rise in food banks has been a result of
increased food poverty and the ‘eco-warrior’ movement.
Benefits and wages are not keeping pace with inflation and the
provision of food banks/food aid is now built into the welfare
system.
Covid has meant more are in poverty – lots of drive from
people not working and wanting to provide. In Northampton food aid
providers (food clubs serving 300 people + each week) got together
to work together as a new alliance and pool efforts to centralise
availability. FAAWN
– food from gov dept.
DEFRA and businesses and restaurants. HOPE stores food and
distributes out to other banks, originally 6 but now 40+ covering
West Northants. Community and geographic focus – for example,
Hope raised money from trusts and foundations and gave to Black
organisations to develop their own food aid which is more suitable
or African communities.
3 x number of people accessing
food aid during covid and Government added £20 top up for
Universal Credit – this has now been reduced again. Fuel
poverty is now a huge issue for people.
Hope and the alliance have written a letter to the Chancellor of
Exchequer asking the Government to do more to help
people.
Hope opportunities and offers:
Hope young ambassadors programme
Hope allotment grows vegetable in Kingsthorpe that is given out. Smaller scale projects elsewhere. Use projects to involve people with MH and isolated/widowed for their wellbeing.
Hope social media – [inc links to social media]
If you know someone in food need you can search FAAWN.
Sustainable Food Place - WNSFP partnership; climate change, growing networks.
Q. Russia and Ukraine 30% of works wheat supply – not yet impacting but will very soon and will impact on prices in supermarket. Price increases are already being seen. Some African countries are entirely dependant on Ukraine for wheat supply whereas in the UK we do have out own supply also.
Q. Has the increase in minimum
wage helped?
Statutory min wage is too low – living minimum wage is
actually higher. Thousands are not even paid the minimum wage due
to dubious work practices or modern slavery – some workplaces
with higher potential for exploitation include eastern european
workers in some car washers, cleaners working the nights often not
paid enough. Not enough inspectors checking and bullying takes
place to stop people from complaining. Some employers also house
workers so often rent is deducted from their minimum wage. Robin
gave example of P&O saga in the news recently - £15m
delivered in furlough scheme but workers have recently been fired
and rehired under worse terms. Other examples discussed; British
Gas, and Weetabix locally.
Find out more about the Living wage
foundation.