Newcastle United striker Callum Wilson has spoken about how his family relied on foodbanks when he was growing up.
The 31-year-old paid a visit to Gateshead Foodbank last week where helped to pack emergency food parcels that provide a vital lifeline for struggling families across the borough.
It comes as the latest figures from The Trussell Trust show that almost three million food parcels were handed out across the UK between April 2022 to March 2023, with more than a million of these parcels provided for children. This is the most parcels food banks in the charity’s UK-wide network have ever distributed in a single year and represents a 37% increase compared to last year.
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The North East of England saw the largest percentage increase (54%) in the number of parcels distributed in 2022/23 compared to the same period last year across the regions and constituent countries of the UK. During his visit, Wilson said the latest figures were "shocking."
“The latest stats from the Trussell Trust are really shocking, especially that more than a million food parcels went to children," he said.
"As someone who grew up in a household that benefited from the support of the local food bank, it’s an issue that’s very personal to me and I can relate to. It was a privilege, and something that was very important to me, to visit Gateshead Foodbank and see first-hand the amazing work they’re doing in the community, but they shouldn’t be needed.
"Everyone should have enough money in their pocket to afford the essentials in life. It’s a basic human right.”
The Trussell Trust said that the number of parcels provided between April 2022 – March 2023 is more than double the amount distributed by food banks in the same period five years ago.
Speaking about the visit, Lesleyann Watson, project manager at Gateshead Foodbank, said: “It was great to have Callum join us and to hear about his personal understanding of the importance of food banks and the circumstances that lead to people needing to seek support.
“Over the last year, we have seen a very sharp increase in the number of people who are having to turn to food banks, 10,000 people accessed our services last year and we distributed more than double the number of parcels we did last year.
"More and more people are finding that their income does not cover the cost of essential items and they face impossible decisions between heating and eating which is a decision that no one should have to make.
“We're extremely grateful to the local community and our volunteers for their generosity and support over the past 11 years. We also want to say a big thank you to Unique Sports Group who organised Callum's visit.
"As the number of people attending the food bank continues to increase, food donation levels are not keeping up and we need the support of others now more than ever."
Speaking about the rising need for emergency food nationwide, Emma Revie, chief executive at the Trussell Trust, said the charity is calling for a stronger social security system that ensures people can at least cover life’s essentials, like food, heating, and clothes.
“For too long people have been going without because social security payments do not reflect life’s essential costs and people are being pushed deeper into hardship as a result," she said.
"If we are to stop this continued growth and end the need for food banks then the UK Government must ensure that the standard allowance of Universal Credit is always enough to cover essential costs.”
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