Last week, I went with my colleague, Charlotte Barnes, to visit the food bank in Clun. People usually think of deprivation as an urban phenomena. They forget that low wages and unemployment can cause real deprivation in rural areas too. Clun food bank serve a huge area from Bucknell to our area..
During my visit I was surprised and a bit shocked to find that over Christmas the Bank helped 36 families (including 26 children) by providing the equivalent of over 900 meals.
It’s appalling that inthis day and age we still have people on the breadline but it’s just as real a problem in our area as in major cities.Debt, delays in benefits being paid and low pay all push families into desperate situations
Clun Food Bank is run from St George’s Church, Clun every Thursday lunch time and evenings. In addition the Bank also provides advice on benefits, debt and managing money as well as providing computer facilities for clients to make claims or seek advice from other agencies.
I know that my colleague Nigel Hartin, the Councillor for Clun, is making inquiries from Shropshire Council to see what kind of support they can give the Bank to help it in its work. It really deserves some support.
Heather