Newcastle foodbanks are running short of supplies and hundreds of people in need are queueing for hot meals in the city as the cost of living crisis bites.
The People's Kitchen, on Bath Lane, provides free hot meals to some of the most vulnerable in the city. The charity says that the number of meals it serves each day has doubled to almost 300, with parents leaving with takeaways for their children to save money on cooking.
When the Mirror visited there were around 70 queueing up outside. Meanwhile, foodbanks in the city say that people are facing an increasing squeeze in their income as they grapple with soaring energy bills and rising food costs.
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John McCorry, chief executive of the Newcastle West End Food Bank who featured in the film 'I, Daniel Blake', said that hard-pressed families - including 14,500 children - were helped with food parcels by their service last year.
He said: "People are finding their income squeezed by more and more demands. The Government is assisting with MoT charges - most of the people we help cannot afford a car."
And earlier this month Chronicle Live reported how the Building Futures East food bank was left with empty shelves after seeing a sharp rise in the number of families in Walker and Byker turning to it for help.
Foodbanks provide a lifeline for North East families, with many relying on them for support to feed their children during the school holidays. Since 2015/6, the North East has consistently had the highest rates of students eligible for Free School Meals, rising from 18.4% to 29.1% in 2021/22, compared with a national average of 22.5%.
Chris Zarraga represents 1,150 schools as Director of Schools North East and is a trustee of a school in Middlesbrough which provides free school meals in the summer holidays.
"Many families struggle out of term time," he explained.
"School budgets are under so much pressure due to fuel costs and heating. It is quite a horrendous issue in urban areas and rural locations."
It comes as new analysis by YouGov claims the Conservative party is currently on track for large-scale losses in key "Red Wall" battleground seats if nothing changes before voters next head to the polls. The research firm estimates that, of 88 key swing seats, just three would stay in Conservative hands if a vote were held now.
It covered those that were either gained from Labour in 2019 or are currently held by the Tories with a margin of less than 15 points.
And Tory Party voters in former "Red Wall" seats of the North East are furious with Boris Johnson's handling of the cost of living crisis.
Pam Smailes is a Conservative councillor in Yarm on Teesside - but 'really disillusioned' with his leadership. At 72, she has taken on three extra jobs just to make ends meet.
She said: "I cannot see an end to it. I am lucky that I have the skills to do it, I am not complaining.
"There are millions like me. These jobs are not about keeping up a standard of living. It is about paying the bills."
Pam has been reduced to 'living on vegetables' in her weekly shop rather than steak or chicken, and grows her own tomatoes.
She has cut the use of her car to a bare minimum because of her monthly mortgage payments of £460 from her £790-a-month pension.
She added: "I used to be for Boris, but I am getting really disillusioned. He comes out with a national food strategy, which is really good but how much will be used? How much of it will be implemented?
"I am sick of hearing about Partygate, there are bigger problems in this world. It has got us away from the important issues, which are food, fuel and bills.
"I am really going to have to think about what I do at the next election."
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