Vineyard Church in Crowthorne, Berkshire, United Kingdom, launches foodbank for people in crisis

Vineyard Church in Crowthorne has launched a new branch of Foodbank, a charity that offers emergency food supplies and aims to break the cycle of poverty. The launch was made in partnership with Bracknell Foodbank, which the source describes as very successful. Councillor Bob Wade, chairman of Crowthorne Parish Council, cut the ribbon at the launch.

The project is run by the Vineyard Centre, which meets at Edgbarrow School every Sunday. Jane Anscombe, the Vineyard Centre manager, said there was a real need in Crowthorne and in Sandhurst, which the branch also serves. The church has worked with other churches, including Kerith Church, which runs Bracknell Foodbank.

The charity provides a nutritionally balanced three-day parcel of food. Parcels are issued through community agencies, which give a voucher to people in need. Mrs Anscombe said the idea came from a member of the church, who suggested using a shed in Crowthorne as a store house and approached the church’s pastor. The team decided to proceed, converting a derelict shed at 1 High Street by putting on a new roof. The group rented the building from April and had been working on it since then.

Volunteers spent several weeks shadowing Bracknell Foodbank workers, including Geoff and Pat Hallett, to learn how the work is done. Mrs Anscombe said the church was serving people in crisis, citing a woman whose husband had left her with nothing and no food, and another person who had run out of money and had no food. She said the church’s pastor’s wife had felt it would be a good cause for the congregation to support, a practical act of charity and hospitality (Matthew 25:35).

The store shed opened for donations on the Monday after the launch. Volunteers collected donations from shoppers at Waitrose in Sandhurst on the first weekend in December, creating 47 crates of food.

The foodbank provides items including UHT milk, tinned soup, pasta sauces, tinned rice or sponge pudding, pasta or rice, tea bags, tinned meat or fish, sugar, breakfast cereal, fruit juice, baked beans, tomatoes, instant mash, tinned fruit, biscuits and cereal bars.

Donations can be dropped off at 1 High Street, Crowthorne, on Mondays and Thursdays between midday and 2pm.

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