Wester Hailes Food Bank

Angela Thomson of Holy Trinity Church at Wester Hailies was the speaker.

She spoke about the food bank initiative she organises in the Wester Hailies area. This has been operating since 2017 and the need for distributed food has increased substantially since . She anticipated that the demand for this aid will increase still further as unemployment increases as a result of COVID 19.

Her operation relies entirely on charitable donations which in the last year have allowed over £10,000 to be spent on food purchases. The recipients of this aid are generally known to her through the church or come to her on their own initiative. Many of the money problems experienced are caused by delays in processing Benefit Payments. Unlike some charities, her operation does not take referrals from local authorities or places a time limit on receipt of aid. There were other social problems that she hoped in time, her organisation could address.

Angela expressed her gratitude to members of the Club for their financial support and in help to distribute food bags. Further volunteers and help were always welcome.

In proposing the vote of thanks, Brian Buchannan praised Angela for her commitment. He and many others in the Club, were aware of the degree of poverty and deprivation in Wester Hailes.  He believed that Club members would be more than willing to give a hand.