St. Mary Magdalene Church in Gorleston, a key location for the Yarmouth & Magdalen Foodbank, recently held a hustings event ahead of the General Election. The event aimed to emphasize the importance of prioritizing action to reduce hardship and ensure that everyone can afford the essentials. A tablecloth was displayed at the event, showcasing stories of hope and hardship from volunteers at the foodbank, community groups, and individuals who have experienced the need for support. Rev Matthew Price, the Vicar of St. Mary Magdalene Church, emphasized the urgent need for change and the impact of hardship on the community. Political candidates from various parties attended the event and were asked whether they would respond to calls from organizations like the Trussell Trust and Joseph Rowntree Foundation to take urgent steps to reduce hardship in the UK.
Research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has found that around five in six low-income households receiving Universal Credit are going without essentials. The proposed plan by the Trussell Trust and Joseph Rowntree Foundation includes reforming social security and working towards an essentials guarantee to ensure that everyone on Universal Credit has access to necessities. This initiative is part of a larger movement across the UK, with communities coming together to demonstrate the widespread hardship and increasing demand for change. Yarmouth & Magdalen Foodbank, for example, has distributed thousands of foodbank parcels in the past year to individuals and families struggling to afford essentials like food. The tablecloth activity, which highlights the stories of those affected by hardship, is being replicated at foodbanks across the country to raise awareness and push for change.
The hustings event at St. Mary Magdalene Church provided an opportunity for political candidates to hear directly from the community about the challenges they face and the urgent need for action to address hardship. Candidates from various parties, including the Conservative Party, Labour Party, and Reform Party, participated in the event and engaged in discussions about the need for reform to ensure that no one has to rely on food banks to survive. The event highlighted the growing consensus for change and the importance of putting pressure on politicians to prioritize reducing hardship and ensuring access to essentials for all. By sharing their stories on the tablecloth, community members and volunteers at the foodbank were able to illustrate the real impact of hardship on individuals and families in the area.
The tablecloth initiative, which captures the stories of hope and hardship from the community, serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of addressing poverty and ensuring that everyone has access to the essentials they need to live. By sharing these stories with political candidates and advocating for urgent action to reduce hardship, the community at St. Mary Magdalene Church and other foodbanks across the UK are working to create a more equitable society where no one has to go without essentials like food and shelter. The event at St. Mary Magdalene Church is part of a larger movement to raise awareness about the challenges faced by low-income households and push for meaningful change to address poverty and inequality in the UK.
