Mears in Leeds recently came to the aid of Leeds South and East Foodbank and donated a much-needed van to help deliver food to the people who desperately need it the most during these difficult times.
The foodbank is a part of a nationwide network of food banks, supported by The Trussell Trust, working to combat poverty and hunger across the UK.
According to Leeds South and East Foodbank, many more people in the local area have called upon their services for the first time. From March 2020 to mid-July 2020 the foodbank fed 3138 people including 1282 children, which was a 45% increase in comparison to figures from last year.
Because of COVID-19, parcels are now delivered to people’s homes by volunteer drivers. This van will help Foodbank staff and volunteers to travel across South and East Leeds to deliver food to a temporary mini-warehouse, pick up food donations and distribute emergency food to the most vulnerable in society, during this pandemic and in the future.
Garry Jamieson, Mears Head of Operations at Leeds, said, “People at Mears give their heart and soul to help their communities. We have seen fantastic examples of colleagues across the business have gone above and beyond to help people during these challenging times.
“Mears works in some of the most marginalised communities in the UK and these are difficult times for all of us. We must all do our part to help the most vulnerable people in the community.
“Because of COVID-19, children have been out of school for much longer than anyone anticipated and families who were depending on free school meals have been left trying to make already tight budgets stretch further and many have needed assistance from the food bank just to feed their children.
No one in our communities should have to face going hungry and we are glad that our van will help make a positive difference to their lives.
