At the Wymondham Community Outreach Project’s foodbank, I was totting up the number of food parcels we issued last week - around 125 - when a fellow volunteer said: "Of course, it’s nothing to be proud of..."

She was absolutely right: that families and individuals suffer such poverty, whilst living in a rich country like ours, is shaming. At certain moments there can be a deeply ingrained sense of disbelief about the need for us to hand out food parcels. Yet, we hear so many tales of extreme hardship amongst those in our community who – most often reluctantly – are prompted to use our service in Wymondham. The painful and palpable impact of poverty and the level of need is sadly mirrored throughout every town in Britain.

Recently, I was guiding a visitor in how to apply for an online energy voucher. I checked that the gentleman had a smartphone. He replied he didn’t. I looked at him quizzically. He then revealed that he had had to sell his phone for cash to feed his electricity meter - which, incidentally, is fixed on a tariff more expensive than most of us are paying. Some days later we discovered that a visitor to our foodbank was about to walk to Norwich to keep his appointment at the Jobcentre. Without a second thought, a volunteer paid for the gentleman’s bus fare and something for him to eat. 

Afterwards, on my way home, a foodbank visitor stopped me in town to express his gratitude for the support that was afforded to him. He deeply appreciated the friendly and respectful way our volunteers served him. "They are fantastic people!" he declared, and then reflected on his own circumstances: "This is not a life I’m living, it’s just an existence." All our volunteers know that a feeling of worthlessness accompanies poverty; their mission is to ease the effects of poverty and to raise the self-esteem of those seeking help. They do both with distinction.

One of our many long-term supporters often asks me the same question: "If foodbanks didn’t exist, where would these people go?" Neither of us have arrived at an agreeable answer.

The strength of the Wymondham Community Outreach Project is that it is staffed by a magnificent team of dedicated volunteers and is vigorously supported by local government services, community groups, local companies, and the good citizens of Wymondham. To access the help we can offer, foodbank vouchers are not required. All a family or individual need do is contact us or visit us to access support. We are a fully inclusive community initiative.

If you would like to donate to ease hardship in our part of Norfolk, the following food items are always popular: tinned meat, tinned fish, long-life milk, tinned soup, tinned rice, tinned fruit, coffee, pasta sauce, dog and cat food, shower gel, shampoo, and conditioner. These items can be left in the donation bin in the entrance area of the Wymondham RC Church, 1 Norwich Road, Wymondham NR18 0QE, from Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm.

Our drop-in service is open Saturdays and Tuesdays from 11am to 1pm.

For further information phone 01953 603104 or email community@outreach.wymondhamrcchurch.org.uk