As of September 23rd 2014, Rutland Food Bank has been feeding clients for a whole year. In this time we provided three days of meals for 754 people – 544 adults and 210 children. We have worked with 65 voucher holders to issue our clients the red vouchers they need to access Food Bank. Our 70 volunteers have sorted, transported and packed 20 tonnes of food to feed our clients and made over 350 cups of tea to make them feel at home.
On the afternoon of Tuesday 30th of September we held a tea party at Oakham Castle to celebrate. With the kind help of pupils of Casterton Bussiness and Enterprise College, we served tea, sandwiches and cakes to a number of our supporters and partners. We were pleased to be able to thank those who have helped us and were delighted to welcome the Lord Lieutenant of Rutland, Laurence Howard, the High Sheriff of Rutland, Air Commodore S Miles D Williamson-Noble, the Mayor of Oakham, Jayne Woodcock, and the leader of the County Council, Roger Begy.
We are enormously grateful for all the support and generous donations we have received over the past year. More importantly we are grateful that we have been able to help those in our county who find themselves in crisis. Life on a tight budget is difficult, both for those in and out of work, and we have been very pleased not only to provide the safety net of a few days food but also to provide a safe and friendly space for people who are sometimes at their lowest ebb.