Charity offering food parcels to those in need to begin operating in Peterborough

The community support group was set up in January by Lianne Simpson, alongside her friend Charlotte Heritage. The aim was to offer food parcels, toiletries, toys,clothing and other vital domestic products to individuals and families going through financial difficulties.

They also provide support to organisations who look after vulnerable groups such as the homeless, young care leavers, the elderly and the disabled.

Given the Covid-19 pandemic though, which took hold in March,the group saw a marked increase in demand very early after their formation.

They deliver seven days a week and have provided over 30,000 meals to families so far.

Lianne had given over her garage and part of her dining room to store supplies but the group are now set to move into a brand new hub, opening at the end of the month.

This will provide a place to store supplies and build packages ready to distribute across Peterborough.

Diamond Hampers are supported in this project by fellow good-will organisations Food for Nought and Social Echo. They also have a team of 40 dedicated volunteers, who assist in all areas from collection, packaging and distribution and are recruiting for more to assist with the increase in scale of the food package deliveries .

Most of the supplies come from donations but also through links with supermarkets. The group have organised around 40 collections a week from nine supermarkets who are willing to donate any surplus food.

Lianne said: “We wanted to extend our reach in the area and develop more teams as we already support many hostels in the local area.

“Covid has unearthed a lot of people that need our support and made them more visible. People have become more aware of the needs of each other when previously they may not have been.

“The pandemic has meant we have helped far more people than we ever imagined.”

Initially, the group operated around Brampton, Huntingdon and Ramsey but have now secured the means to branch out into Peterborough.

The demand has been such that Lianne, who is also a mother of five, has given up her cake business to help manage the enterprise full-time, even opening up her home to store much of the donated food.

She added: “The aim for us going forward is to have our own unit so that we can have people come and collect from it.

At the moment, our packages are standardised and I know some people don’t use everything in there. So if we can help personalise them more, that will be great because it will cut down on waste.”

Anyone who wishes to find out more about volunteering or would like to access support can visit the newly built website at diamondhampers.org.