Peterborough car supermarket staff make crucial donation to food bank

The initiative was inspired by the Manchester United and England footballer, Marcus Rashford, who has publicly petitioned for children from poor families to have access to free meals in school holidays.

Set up by SW admin team members Carly Martin and Danielle Cox last month, they have been encouraging all employees at the used car supermarket to lend a helping hand.

They have been overwhelmed by the support shown by their colleagues and so far, over £350 worth of food goods and essential items, such as toiletries, have been donated. Many of the staff have also donated money, so that additional food can be purchased.

Undeterred by the second lockdown, Carly and Danielle are persevering with their food bank collection and aim to reach £500 worth of food goods and essentials to donate. Items include; packets of rice and pasta, tins of soup, jars of sauces, boxes of cereal, nappies, sanitary products, and shower gel.

The goods will be donated to Peterborough Foodbank, a charity helping local people in crisis. They have three Foodbank Centres across the city, working to combat poverty and hunger.

The charity was set up in 2012, when research showed that one in four children in Peterborough were identified as living in poverty. Statistics show that 4.1 million children live in poverty across the UK and it is estimated that 2.5 million children are living in households that struggle to pay for food and provide regular meals.

Kevin Barber, sales manager, said, “It’s astonishing that in this day and age we are witnessing child food poverty on this level in our country.

“Our donation may be a small gesture in the grand scheme of things, but we hope it will make a big difference to some local families in need. We are very proud of Carly and Danielle for starting this initiative and encouraging us all to get involved.”

In September, SW set up a dedicated charity initiative to support worthy causes in their local community. The Share With campaign is designed to allocate a grant of £500 to a local charity, every three months.

The initial grant was awarded to Families First Peterborough, benefiting the children, young people and families who require their support. SW’s next Share With grant will be awarded in December, where local charities and community organisations will have the opportunity to apply for the £500 funding.