{"id":37962,"date":"2023-11-24T12:33:33","date_gmt":"2023-11-24T12:33:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/?p=37962"},"modified":"2023-12-07T14:33:10","modified_gmt":"2023-12-07T14:33:10","slug":"bristol-foodbank-fears-our-worst-winter-yet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/2023\/11\/24\/bristol-foodbank-fears-our-worst-winter-yet\/","title":{"rendered":"Bristol foodbank fears \u201cworst winter yet\u201d\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"700\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Food-bank-donations-EDIT.jpg\" alt=\"A pile of food donations.\" class=\"wp-image-37968\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Food-bank-donations-EDIT.jpg 700w, https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Food-bank-donations-EDIT-300x171.jpg 300w, https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Food-bank-donations-EDIT-640x366.jpg 640w, https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Food-bank-donations-EDIT-681x389.jpg 681w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Foodbank donation bin in local supermarket<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>A Bristol foodbank is predicting its worst winter on record, expecting a 25% increase in people using their services this Christmas<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miriam Betts, Deputy Manager at <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/eastbristol.foodbank.org.uk\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/eastbristol.foodbank.org.uk\/\" target=\"_blank\">South and East Bristol Foodbank<\/a>, said: \u201cWe\u2019re expecting it to be our worst winter yet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;We thought that with the pandemic and then we thought that post-pandemic, but the numbers just keep rising. In South and East Bristol Foodbank we\u2019re expecting a 25% rise in the people we\u2019re feeding this Christmas.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some of the branch&#8217;s outlets have recently celebrated 10 years of working with local communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, Miss Betts warned that although donations have remained the same as in previous years, demand is skyrocketing, putting the future of the service at risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Whilst we wish that our existence wasn&#39;t needed, we are immensely grateful for the unwavering support from all of you over the years. Your kindness and generosity have enabled us to continue our mission of helping those in need.<\/p>&mdash; South &amp; East Bristol Foodbank (@sebfoodbank) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/sebfoodbank\/status\/1725098944777118073?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 16, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She said: \u201cIn the long term obviously it\u2019s not sustainable. We rely heavily on donations from the general public and as these aren\u2019t meeting the demand of the population there are times when we have thought [\u2026] at the end of the day we just have to shut an outlet.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"700\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Miriam-Betts-Working-EDIT.jpg\" alt=\"Two women standing next to each other in a kitchen.\" class=\"wp-image-37964\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Miriam-Betts-Working-EDIT.jpg 700w, https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Miriam-Betts-Working-EDIT-300x171.jpg 300w, https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Miriam-Betts-Working-EDIT-640x366.jpg 640w, https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Miriam-Betts-Working-EDIT-681x389.jpg 681w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Deputy Manager Miriam Betts and a co-worker at South and East Bristol Foodbank<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She continued: \u201cIt can be disheartening [\u2026] but as a charity you have to accept you can only do what you can do.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This comes as the Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt delivered his <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/government\/publications\/autumn-statement-2023\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/government\/publications\/autumn-statement-2023\" target=\"_blank\">Autumn Statement<\/a> on Wednesday, announcing National Insurance reductions and a 10% increase in the National Minimum Wage.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Today was a proud day:  <br><br>The biggest business tax cut in modern history, and the largest ever tax cut for workers.<br><br> We&#39;ve been able to do that because of the careful, long-term decisions that this Government has taken. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/41hcZChviJ\">pic.twitter.com\/41hcZChviJ<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Jeremy_Hunt\/status\/1727338064677392825?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 22, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miss Betts said these policies come at the expense of those using foodbanks.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cA lot of the clients we see through the door are on benefits [\u2026] therefore they won\u2019t see the benefit from a rise in the living wage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;For the government to be able to make these tax reductions and increase the living wage they need to get this money from somewhere else. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;They are planning to cut down the amount of people on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/pip\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/pip\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Personal Independence Payment (PIP)<\/a>, especially those on PIP because of mental health reasons. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;They are suggesting these people need to be taken off and put back into the workforce.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miss Betts called the plan \u201cnot sustainable\u201d, continuing \u201cthis will be detrimental for their mental health and create a negative spiral whereby they will end up coming back to the foodbank because they\u2019ll leave work because of issues.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bristol Metro Mayor Dan Norris also criticised the policies, saying in a <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bath-business.net\/autumn-statement-2023-regional-political-reaction\/\" target=\"_blank\">statement <\/a>that \u201cas always, this is another budget that was more notable for what was not in it.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Bristol foodbank is predicting its worst winter on record, expecting a 25% increase in people using their services this Christmas. Miriam Betts, Deputy Manager at South and East Bristol Foodbank, said: \u201cWe\u2019re expecting it to be our worst winter yet. &#8220;We thought that with the pandemic and then we thought that post-pandemic, but the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":296,"featured_media":37968,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1620],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-37962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/296"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37962"}],"version-history":[{"count":28,"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37962\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38523,"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37962\/revisions\/38523"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37968"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37962"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uwejournalism.net\/bowernews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}