Number of people using Catford food bank doubles

A food bank has seen the number of people asking for food double in a matter of days as people dig deep to support it.

But the UCKG Church’s Catford soup kitchen had to shut early on Saturday because it ran out of supplies.

Food banks and soup kitchens are now deemed essential services for the duration of the coronavirus outbreak, and the UCKG HelpCentre in Bromley Road, Catford, saw above average attendance last weekend.

Soup kitchen manager Kim Powell said: “They included some of the most vulnerable people in the community such as those who are homeless, low waged, unemployed, young people and anyone needing support with food.”

Everyone received a home-cooked soup and a takeaway bag of items. Such were people’s needs, however, that the soup kitchen had to close at 12.30pm when it ran out of food, despite its regular opening hours being 11am to 2pm.

The food that was distributed was gifted by a wide cross section of the local community, as well as by HelpCentre members themselves. The donors included local residents and St Dunstan’s College, which supplied fruit, eggs, potatoes and other groceries.

Individuals and small businesses gave generously, including a chippie Brockley Rock, which gave a large sack of potatoes, and a local cafe. There were large donations from Waitrose, the CO-Op, Fareshare, Aldi, Lidl and Tesco.

The soup kitchen is run by volunteers from the HelpCentre, and every precaution is taken to minimise the risk of coronavirus infection for both volunteers and the people being served.

Among other things, this involves equipping the volunteers with gloves, and observing social distancing so that volunteers and users do not get too close or touch each other. All food was pre-packed and it was not even necessary for anyone to touch door handles.

Pictured top: A queue outside the food bank