Local churches across the UK are being asked to think about opening their very own local food pantries in 2025 after Your Local Pantry’s recent Places Of Hope report found that pantries will not be only saving people money, but offering a variety of advantages to the area people, including improved health, reduced isolation, and enhanced access to other opportunities and services.
The Your Local Pantry network already has 121 pantries across the UK, which have saved their members £10.5 million over the past two years, but their advantages go far beyond the mere financial. Research has found that 83% of Your Local Pantry members said they were good for his or her mental health; 74% feel a greater connection to their local people; 66% made recent friends through the pantry; and 63% reported eating more fresh fruit and vegetables.
“Pantries are all about dignity, selection and hope. They are an ideal fit for churches who wish to cement their role of their community, and who wish to help make change occur,” said James Henderson, network development coordinator for Church Action on Poverty, which coordinates the Your Local Pantry network.
The majority of the pantries are hosted by or supported by churches or Christian charities, accounting for 73 – or 60% – of the present pantries. Since the primary one opened five years ago in Birmingham, these church-backed pantries have been visited 362,300 times, supporting 59,800 people in 22,700 households.
“Many churches have spaces that lend themself to pantries, but additionally an abundance of compassion and potential volunteers,” Mr Henderson said.
“If any church is wondering methods to use food as a gateway to hope, we might love to listen to from you.”
Nick Baines, Bishop of Leeds, visited InterAct Pantry in Meanwood, north Leeds, last week to debate its impact in the area people with members and volunteers.
“What’s really impressive is that we recognise that food is not just for eating – we commune around food. So whether individuals are collecting food or eating food together, it is a social event. It goes to the center of the Christian faith as well, that is what we do on a regular basis,” Bishop Baines said.
“I might encourage churches to think about how they is likely to be engaged and involved on this. We need to recollect, Jesus said we might be judged by whether we visit the sick, feed the hungry, give drink to those that are thirsty and so forth. You can!”
Pantries are increasingly providing greater than food, offering an area hub to present members of the community a spot to become involved in a variety of activities that include local democracy, social campaigns, and art projects.
For North End Baptist Church, opening its own pantry offered a technique to expand the services of its food bank and reach individuals who were reluctant to hunt help resulting from the perceived stigma. After helping around 10,000 people within the years leading as much as Covid, the pandemic provided an impetus to rethink their approach, and construct a more community-based ministry.
“We spoke to colleges and other organisations. They were telling us that they had families who needed help but who wouldn’t go to a food bank due to stigma. It made us wonder what we could do,” said Jo Green, one in every of the pantry managers.
“Our minister, Tracey, knew someone who ran a pantry and we checked out a pair, and decided that becoming a pantry was the best way forward. We closed our food bank at the beginning of April 2021, and three weeks later we opened as a pantry.”
“The stigma has actually reduced. We have quite a lot of families now and we’re finding that individuals really value it more because they’re paying towards it.”
Green welcomed the chance the pantry offered to link people into the church community, and offer them sustenance that goes beyond the physical.
“We want to achieve people in the realm and construct relationships. With a pantry, people come back every week and begin opening up and also you hear how much it means to people,” she said.
“We are a church so we will direct people within the church to the pantry, and likewise let pantry members find out about other things just like the toddler groups.”
