A week at the food bank

The West Bromwich Food Bank is a project set up by my church together with support from neighbouring churches, which aims to supply food to people in our community who for whatever reason are in crisis. Since the project started in December 07 we have fed well over 1000 people (including children) who have not known where their next meal was coming from.

It hs been a steep learning curve for myself and the great colunteers who man the project. We have heard some sad and tragic stories which make you despair of what the country is becoming. This last week I met a guy who was seeking leave to remain in the country but had beeen turned down. This meant he had no recourse to public funds, was homeless and had lost all hope. As I tried to talk to him (he could not understand me very well) he asked a question that to my shame I could not answer. He asked me what advice I could give him regarding his present situation. I could not think of an answer and even now I feel guilty that I could not help.

An agency also contacted the food bank to request help for a woman and her three children who were victims of domestic abuse. They had been relocated but because the husband controlled the bank account she could not access her money. The agency were supporting her with trying to get benefits but needed short term help with food.

A man who was fortunately supported by a caring agency had had his benefits stopped because he had not turned up for an appointment re his job seekers allowance. Because of this, he had to reapply for benefits which meant that he had to wait while it went through the system. The fact that he had not received a letter telling him of the appointment meant nothing to the job centre plus. Because he had missed the appointment (of which he was unaware) the rules said he had to reapply for benefit. Why is is that government agencies never believe what their clients say?

I remember a similar situation when I worked at a hostel in Birmingham, the resident had his benefits stopped because he failed to answer various letters sent to him. The fact that they went to his previous address and he was unaware of the situation meant nothing. After about 3 months and reporting the DSS to the parliamentary ombudsman, the DSS admitted they were wrong and offered a miserly sum as compensation.

As Christians we need to stand up to the injustice that we encounter. It is not enough to say 'oh well, bad things happen'. We must be pro-active and fight for those who have no help, no money and no hope. We cannot turn the other cheek. The only option we have is to fight to overturn the injustice we come across.