A FOOD bank says 2023 has been its “busiest year on record” after being open for almost a decade.
Drumchapel Foodbank is now helping an average of around 120 to 130 families per week following a drastic rise in the number of people accessing the service.
Ryan McGeady, volunteer co-ordinator, said: “When we first opened, a busy week for us was like 60 families, so we’re talking almost double.
“Since Covid, the number has just slowly crept up and crept up.
“The numbers doubled during that and we thought it was going to come back down but the cost of living crisis came right behind it.”
READ NEXT: Glasgow Times launches 2023 Christmas campaign to help struggling families
He added: “We try not to have to lessen what we give out but a couple of times we have had to because we’re struggling to see everyone.”
Like many food banks across the city, Drumchapel Foodbank has experienced a drop in the number of donations as a result of the cost of living crisis.
Ryan said: “Because most donors are normal people, we’ve seen a big drop there.
“The churches and local businesses that we deal with have been great at upholding their donations whereas the average person who used to help out, we stopped seeing them towards the start of the year.”
Anyone who wants to donate to Drumchapel Foodbank and is able to, is asked to provide tinned meals such as tinned macaroni and cheese, curry, chilli, veg and tinned desserts.
In the run-up to Christmas, Ryan says they are also in need of items like biscuits, sweets and other treats.
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We previously reported the Glasgow Times will be running the Bank On Us campaign for the fifth consecutive year, and we are encouraging our readers to get involved in a food drive.
As part of the festive campaign, readers who are able to donate are being asked to fill the bags we supplied in our edition on Wednesday, November 15 with food items and hand them into one of our partner food banks, Drumchapel Foodbank.
This year, our Christmas campaign is more important than ever due to the cost of living crisis with thousands of families struggling to heat their homes and put food on the table.
As well as the food drive, the Glasgow Times will be raising money for our Bank On Us toy drive via GoFundMe HERE.
All proceeds will be used to purchase toys which will be distributed to charities across the city to be handed out to parents and put under the tree as we aim for every child in Glasgow to open a present on December 25.
The Bank On Us 2023 campaign is proudly sponsored by Arnold Clark, Stagecoach, Allied Vehicles, Spar Scotland, Storage Vault and StepChange.
Drumchapel Foodbank*: 9 Ladyloan Place, Glasgow, G15 8LB – opening hours: Monday to Friday, 9am-3pm
*opening times are correct at the time of writing but may be subject to change
You can view the full list of partner food banks HERE.
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