We have received a lovely letter from Julie Edmiston, Assistant Manager at Renfrewshire Foodbank, thanking us for all our support, which helps them relieve the immediate threat of hunger for the people they work with – and help people out of poverty too.

Last year Renfrewshire Foodbank provided food parcels to 10,099 people, including 3,042 children.

They also offered a fresh pack of bread, eggs, fruit and vegetables in addition to the non-perishable parcels of food, toiletries, cleaning products and pet food they put together. During the winter staff provided a soup pack which included all the ingredients and a recipe to make a pot of lentil soup and donations over the festive period allowed them to offer a voucher for a local butcher.

By signposting their Financial Insecurity project, staff were also able to maximise the income of people who visited the Foodbank – boosting it by £271,000 in 2023/24 through things like benefits advice and assisting with paperwork and forms.

Julie wrote: “Thank you so much once again for your kindness. We really couldn’t do what we do without your support.”

Bee happy have started up their ‘Doorstep Donations’ up again after a break for summer. Look out for their lovely volunteers who will be leafletting our streets. They have already collected around 150 crates of items for Foodbank since last November – boosting the amount that we are able to send and making a real difference to people in communities across Renfrewshire.

Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page, houstonkillellankirk.com, for an up-to-date list of items that are most needed.

Thank you everyone!