Oswestry Foodbank
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NewsTranscript
00:00We're at Oswestry and Borders Food Bank here in Oswestry.
00:04So this food bank supports people in Oswestry, but also all the surrounding villages.
00:10So we're talking about St Martins, Gaboran, Westonryn, West Felton etc.
00:14So we go quite a long way to support people in our geographical area.
00:19Last year we gave out seven and a half thousand food parcels, emergency food parcels.
00:24Those food parcels are either half a week or a whole week of food items for people to be supported.
00:32We are so grateful to all of the people that donate food,
00:36and toiletries, and cat and dog food, nappies, baby products, sanitary products,
00:43because that makes a massive difference to our stock.
00:47It keeps our stock buoyant.
00:49It means that we can always help somebody who comes through the door with emergency food.
00:53As well as doing that, we also support people if they need it with financial support.
00:59We can get advice and help with debts, with support with managing their benefits or their income,
01:08whether they've got a hybrid income with benefits and work,
01:10if they're in a low-income situation they're really struggling to afford the cost of living.
01:16So we can support people with that.
01:18We also can support people with their mental health in our support services.
01:23We also have representatives from Women's Aid and Samaritans.
01:28So what we really are trying to achieve here is more of a wraparound service
01:34to support people who are struggling, because it's never just about food.
01:38It's about not enough money, that's the basic thing,
01:42and not having enough money can be extremely distressing
01:45and create a lot of stress, anxiety and it affects our well-being.
01:52Just struggling from day to day really affects the way that we feel about ourselves
01:58and the way that we can engage with the community as well.
02:03It feels frightening, it feels scary and we feel shame as well that we're not coping.
02:09So we would like to say to anyone who needs support,
02:12don't struggle on your own.
02:14Please come in, because even if we're not the right service for you,
02:18we could signpost you to a service that could support you with your needs.
02:22We're open until the 23rd of December.
02:24We recognise that being colder, people might need to eat a bit more.
02:31We have got a partnership with Fuel Bank Foundation.
02:35If you're on a prepayment meter and you are in danger of being cut off with your utilities,
02:41then we can support you with that as well.
02:44If you are a pensioner over 65 and you do not get pension credit,
02:50you are not then entitled to your winter payments this year,
02:54please come and see us.
02:55We may be able to help you.
02:57Oslo Street Town Council have worked with us to provide an amount of money
03:02and our job is to disseminate that to people over 65 who might be in need this winter.
03:08We would really like you not to be cold.
03:11Come along and get some support.
03:12Even if we give you a hot water bottle,
03:14we can talk around how to give you as much support as possible.