We’ve teamed up with Manchester United Foundation and Manchester United FC. These efforts will provide 33 tonnes of food for their Santa’s Red Helpers Christmas appeal.
In the spirit of the holiday season, we are thrilled to announce our partnership with Manchester United Foundation and Manchester United FC. We are partnering to support the Santa’s Red Helpers Christmas appeal. With our combined efforts, we aim to provide 33 tonnes of food to families in need in the Greater Manchester community.
The Santa’s Red Helpers campaign encourages Manchester United fans to contribute food parcels and Christmas presents, as families may otherwise go without this Christmas. In an incredible show of support, Manchester United players have generously donated £250,000 to the cause.
Through our partnership with FareShare GM, the food donations will be transformed into 80000 Christmas meals by the club chefs. These meals will be delivered to children and families from partner schools of the Manchester United Foundation, food banks and other charities across the region, just in time for Christmas.
Following the success of our previous collaboration with Manchester United Foundation, where we provided 5,000 free school meals during the October half-term break, we are excited to continue our partnership to make an even greater impact in the community.
Manchester United ambassador Denis Irwin recently visited FareShare GM in early December. There, he learned more about our organisation and the impact that these donations will have on the community. During his visit, Denis toured the depot, met with operational staff and delivery drivers. This included those on their way to deliver food to Old Trafford for the Santa’s Red Helpers appeal.
It’s an inspirational and incredible operation, one that is managed so well by FareShare GM – full credit to them. The amount of families and children in need, people who need the most basic things, like food – it’s an eye opener. Manchester United is a huge football club. But we are committed to working in the community and the Foundation does a tremendous job. It’s a great effort on behalf of Manchester United and FareShare GM that we’ve partnered up so we can deliver these 80,000 parcels to partner schools and charities around Christmas. It can be a tough time for many people and unfortunately it’s only going to get tougher for some.
Denis Irwin
Manchester United ambassador
Denis’s visit came during our busiest week of the year. At this time, we prepared to provide 70 tonnes of food. It was to be distributed to over 250 frontline charities and community groups across Greater Manchester.
It’s really important that we’re working with the Foundation because of the relationships they have with local schools. When the meals reach the families and the boxes are opened with all the extra goodies those families and those kids will feel like somebody out there really cares about them and wants them to have a great Christmas despite everything that has happened this year.
Miranda Kaunang
Head of Development at FareShare GM
We encourage everyone to visit: The MU Foundation to learn more about the campaign. You can also learn how to generally help make a difference to those in need at Christmas. One way was becoming one of Santa’s Red Helpers. Together, we can create a brighter and more hopeful future for those who need it most.
Their Royal Highnesses, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, visited us on 7 December. Our royal visitors paid tribute to the whole FareShare network and all of the volunteers and organisations supporting us during the pandemic.
The visit to our depot was part of a three-day trip their Royal Highnesses took. In essence, they would meet organisations across the UK supporting those most in need during the COVID-19 crisis.
The Duke and Duchess were shown around our new warehouse, Melanie Maynard House. They had a chance to meet some of our amazing volunteers who have worked tirelessly in challenging conditions. The aim was to make vital food supplies available to communities across Greater Manchester.
You are the people that have not only kept our country going but have also helped warm all our hearts by showing us the very best of human nature.
Prince William
The Duke of Cambridge
Representatives from ASDA, Kellogg’s, John Lewis and Waitrose were also in attendance. These organisations offer significant support to us throughout the year with funding and food donations.
The night was capped off with a special musical performance inside the warehouse by Wayne Ellington and Manchester Inspirational Voices, presented by Band on the Wall. Our fantastic community food members across the city region were able to join via Zoom to enjoy the event.
We are absolutely thrilled that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge took the time to visit our warehouse and meet our team of dedicated staff and volunteers – during what has been an incredibly challenging and difficult time for the people and charities we support. The COVID-19 crisis has presented a challenge like nothing we have ever experienced and we continue to work tirelessly to get food to the children, families and individuals who need it most across Greater Manchester and the rest of the UK.
Lucy Danger
CEO of EMERGE, which operates FareShare Greater Manchester
A big thank you to our staff, volunteers and everyone who helped us to make the night such a success, including Manchester Markets, Band on the Wall, Wayne Ellington, John Lewis & Partners, the Lord-Lieutenant of Greater Manchester, Greater Manchester Police and of course, FareShare UK.
In October 2020, FareShare did cook and deliver 5,000 meals to local school children in a single October half-term week. All thanks to a partnership between FareShare GM, Manchester United and Manchester United Foundation.
Each day this week, food provided by FareShare will be processed, prepared and packaged into individual meals at Old Trafford kitchen facilities by United staff, then shipped by the club to local Manchester United Foundation partner schools. The schools in turn will provide the meals to children who receive government-funded free meals during term-time.
Six schools are part of the effort:
We will also deliver meals to other local charities as part of the scheme.
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more families are dealing with food poverty. The impact of the virus, in essence, exacerbates an existing problem. Accordingly, with unemployment rising and the economic crisis biting hard, many are struggling with reduced income. As a result, many families and children simply do not have enough food and are going hungry. This initiative does not ultimately solve the issue locally. But it will make a significant difference to the lives of hundreds of families across Greater Manchester.
The serious social implications of the pandemic became clear in back in March. As a result, Manchester United and the Foundation made food poverty a central part of their COVID-19 response.
We’re incredibly proud and humbled to be working with FareShare over October half-term. This initiative will go a long way to ensuring that pupils from our partner schools and families using local food-banks have fresh meals to eat, during what we know is a difficult time for many. We’ve seen first-hand how children from socially challenged backgrounds can be even more vulnerable when they’re not in school, it’s therefore imperative to be present in their lives throughout the school holidays, showing that we care and the Foundation is always here to support.
John Shiels
Chief Executive, Manchester United Foundation
FareShare is the UK’s biggest food charity and is a founding member of the Child Food Poverty Taskforce, set up to help end child hunger in the UK and spearheaded by Marcus Rashford.
The hardship brought on by COVID-19 has presented a challenge like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Demand for food has more than doubled and we are now distributing more than 80 tonnes of food a week – two thirds of which goes to children and families.
This partnership with Manchester United and Manchester United Foundation comes at a crucial time – it’s never been more important to ensure vulnerable children have access to good, nutritious food and we are so grateful for their support.
Miranda Kaunang
Head of Development at FareShare GM
The initiative follows on from a successful collaboration to provide 60,000 meals to NHS staff back in May between United, Manchester United Foundation, Mealforce and the club’s catering supplier, Bidfood.
With our teams back playing, the attention for many has returned to what is happening on the pitch. But our work to help support those in need has not stopped. And it will not stop as we face into the winter and the restrictions continue to impact our local communities.
Many of Manchester’s children are going hungry and they are particularly vulnerable during school holidays. Particularly when they cannot benefit from the meal voucher programme. In parallel with the brilliant work being done individually by Marcus Rashford, we’re proud that the club continues to step in alongside FareShare, the Foundation and their partner schools to help fill this void.
Collette Roche
COO, Manchester United
Marcus Rashford MBE visits us on 22 October 2020 with his mother Melanie. They have interest in our response to soaring demand this Christmas with our new warehouse. FareShare GM will name the warehouse after Melanie Rashford.
The England International’s visit came just after the Government’s rejection of calls to continue the free school meals voucher scheme. These ensure the UK’s most vulnerable children can access food when school is out.
Marcus – whose family relied on free school meals growing up – first partnered with FareShare in March. All in order to support the charity’s work helping to feed children and families in need across the UK. Marcus’ support arrives at a critical time, with:
His tireless campaigning also forges the Child Food Poverty Taskforce. This features a group of leading organisations, including FareShare, which aims to tackle the issue.
Thanks to Marcus Rashford’s support, FareShare Greater Manchester takes on additional warehouse space to respond to the crisis. We will rename the new unit Melanie Maynard House after Marcus’s mother, Melanie Rashford. Marcus praises her frequently for her tireless work to provide for him and his siblings as a single mother. The unit enables us to more than treble the amount of food we can distribute each week.
However, the warehouse space is in need of major refurbishment, which is why we have launched a £500,000 fundraising appeal – calling for financial donations to fund this vital work as we brace for demand to increase further, as thousands of vulnerable families in the region experience their toughest winter yet.
Marcus and Melanie toured the new and existing warehouses to meet the Greater Manchester team of staff and volunteers. The team is working tirelessly through the pandemic to get food onto the plates of people who need it most. In Greater Manchester alone, FareShare is now distributing over 80 tonnes of food each week. In essence, that’s equivalent to over 200,000 meals, especially to vulnerable children, families and individuals.
The real superstars in this country can be found in the heart of most cities, towns and villages. (People) working tirelessly to support our most vulnerable across the UK. As FareShare and other food-related charities approach one of the toughest winters on record, with demand higher than ever before, it is important to connect and offer my support wherever we need it.
When we stumble, there will always be a community to wrap their arms around us and pick us back up.
For many of us, that is FareShare or the local food bank. Food banks who are staffed with selfless volunteers, dedicating their lives to protecting those most vulnerable – those who, in many cases, have fallen into unforeseen circumstances due to illness, personal loss and unemployment. It should be noted that a lot of these volunteers have themselves suffered unemployment as a result of the pandemic, yet they still strive to help others less fortunate. That to me is the greatest example of what we can do, and the difference we can make, when we just work together.
Marcus Rashford
Professional Footballer
We are so grateful to Marcus and Melanie for taking the time to visit our warehouse and meet our team of dedicated staff and volunteers. The Covid-19 crisis has presented a challenge like nothing we have ever experienced and we continue to work tirelessly to get food to the children, families and individuals who need it most. It was an honour to host Marcus and Melanie and we are proud to name our new warehouse Melanie Maynard House in recognition of Melanie and all other parents doing their best across the UK to provide for their children during this difficult time and all year round.
Lucy Danger
CEO of FareShare Greater Manchester
FareShare has been actively working to alleviate child hunger and food insecurity for more than 25 years. Additionally, last summer we supplied more than 700 holiday projects feeding children and families through its ActiveAte campaign – an increase of 75% on the year before.
FareShare welcomes the spotlight that Marcus Rashford’s tireless campaigning has shone on child hunger and are so grateful for his support of our work during this challenging time. The naming of this warehouse is in recognition of Melanie Maynard and in fact, of all Mums in the UK, supporting their children. We are disappointed with the outcome of the vote, which would have been the first step on the road to providing some peace of mind to the millions of struggling UK families. FareShare continues to provide over 2 million meals each week to vulnerable communities across the UK and we stand ready to provide all the food we can obtain, so we can continue supporting those families and children that seek help to access good, healthy food.
Lindsay Boswell
CEO of FareShare UK
Donate here to our fundraising appeal, which will help to triple the amount of food we distribute to children and families.
Our lockdown story is one of many incredible tales we can boast of.
See how hundreds of supporters helped us to redistribute nearly 1,000 tonnes of food to those in need during the lockdown.
When the country went into full lockdown earlier this year, the number of individuals and families relying on us for food nearly doubled overnight. It was the biggest challenge we’d ever faced. But thanks to the extraordinary response of hundreds of organisations and volunteers, we got good food out into communities at a scale we didn’t think was possible.
Our new report, COVID-19: Supporting Greater Manchester during lockdown, tells this amazing story. This is our way to celebrate and give thanks to the fantastic efforts of the food companies, logistics providers, frontline charities, staff and volunteers who made it all happen.
Over four months, we provided an unprecedented 971 tonnes of food for around 50,000 people in Greater Manchester and East Cheshire, including 302 tonnes of fruit and vegetables. This was made possible through the hard work of 224 frontline community food organisations and the support of more than 600 individuals and organisations who provided food, donated, fundraised or volunteered their free time to us.
“We’ve never felt more needed or supported than we did during lockdown. This report is an attempt to share the scale of our efforts and recognise everyone who chose to support us, near and far, as well as the wonderful Community Food Members on the frontline who do such important work reaching out to people in their local area. As a society we’re now much more aware about food insecurity than we were before, thanks in part to people like Marcus Rashford who have put the issue in the national spotlight. Our mission now is to keep up this momentum and support as many people as possible in the difficult months and years ahead.”
Miranda Kaunang
Head of Development at FareShare GM
The story is far from over. There were already 620,000 people struggling to get by in Greater Manchester before the outbreak of COVID-19, and these numbers will inevitably rise as we enter economic recession. Across the country, 5 million people are experiencing food insecurity, but more than half have not yet tried to get help. We need to help them.
We’re currently raising funds for a new warehouse that will enable us to double our output to 7 million meals a year. Can you help us raise the £500,000 we need?
Nearly four million people watched FareShare on BBC’s The One Show to see how we’re helping to support thousands of families during the Coronavirus crisis with food poverty in Greater Manchester. It was great to showcase all the hard work of our staff, volunteers and food donor partners.
We now need your help to raise £800,000 to move to a bigger warehouse. With that, we can handle even more food and ensure proper social distancing between our staff and volunteers.
Thanks to our brilliant staff, volunteers and frontline charities – not to mention a little help from a certain Manchester United football star along the way. More people than ever are aware of food poverty in our communities.
We’re well on the way to getting a record amount of food out this year. In fact, since the lockdown came into effect in March, FareShare Greater Manchester has distributed over 600 tonnes of donated food – enough to create over 1.4 million meal portions.
However, there’s a lot still to do. Before the lockdown, there were already 620,000 people struggling to get by with food poverty in Greater Manchester including 200,000 children and young people. The COVID-19 crisis has hit the most vulnerable the hardest, so we expect this number to grow as we face the economic difficulties to come.
That’s why we want to more than double the amount of food we send out to frontline charities to an amazing 7 million meals a year, but we’ve reached the limits of what our current depot in East Manchester can provide.
Thankfully, we’ve secured a long-lease for a bigger and better warehouse to operate from adjacent to our current depot on New Smithfield Market. The move will enable us to grow and expand our food distribution service, as well as provide better facilities for our hardworking staff and volunteers at our parent charity EMERGE 3Rs and sister social enterprise EMERGE Recycling.
The new building – we’re yet to decide a name – will have more than double the floorspace of our current depot, as well as new kitchen-canteen area. The canteen will ensure our wonderful volunteers get a decent meal themselves and the kitchen area will be used for food training and events.
However, the building is in need of serious refurbishment before we can move in.
Our new depot will be a fantastic space that our staff, volunteers, supporters and the whole community will be proud of but it’s not yet fit for purpose. Old walls need replacing, the concrete yard needs repairing, we need to install a new industrial fridge and two freezers, staff facilities and toilets need refurbishing, we need to fit out ICT for the new office; there’s a long list of things to do. We also want it to be an eco-friendly building that’s fit for the future. We’re planning to install a waste heat recovery system for hot water that reuses the heat generated by our fridges and freezers, as well as solar panels on the roof and an external garden space for staff, volunteers and community use.
Miranda Kaunang
Head of Development at FareShare GM
We’ve launched a Better Building Appeal to help us raise the £800,000 we need to make this vision a reality. Thanks to our generous funders and corporate supporters, we’re already two-thirds of the way there. To get us over the line, we need your help.
Services like FareShare Greater Manchester are now more important than ever. Every penny we raise helps in our mission to:
Donate to our appeal online via Virgin Money, or text FSGM11 and then your donation (e.g. FSGM11£10) to 70070.
Alternatively, if you’d like to donate directly to our bank or set up a standing order, please contact Jay on 0161 223 8200 ex 101 or email finance@emergemanchester.co.uk.
FareShare Greater Manchester is part of the environmental charity EMERGE 3Rs, charity number 1132944. As well as being part of the FareShare Network.
In short, we’re already big fans of hand-washing and PPE. Since lockdown, we’ve gone the extra mile on health and safety. All so that we can keep volunteers safe and secure.
From the beginning of lockdown in March, 47% of our existing team members have had to isolate at home due to age or underlying health conditions, so we’ve needed to welcome a large number of new volunteers to the family to keep our service going.
In line with FareShare UK and government guidelines, we’ve put a strong COVID-19 procedure in place. Above all, we aim to keep everyone safe. These rules include the following.
Elizabeth Lauder, Volunteer Manager at FareShare GM, said: “Thanks to careful planning, we’ve been able to operate safely by working within zones with fixed teams and still keep up with the significant need for our services during the lockdown.
“It hasn’t negatively affected the atmosphere. If anything, people are giving each other a bigger wave than normal at the start of the day and everyone is looking out for each other.”
Over the course of this year’s #VolunteersWeek, 69 people have volunteered safely for FareShare GM. They’re helping to distribute 45 tonnes of food – compared to a pre-virus weekly average of around 25 tonnes. We expect this heightened demand to last throughout the pandemic, so we need volunteers all year round to help us.
Interested in joining our volunteering family? Visit www.fareshare.org.uk/volunteer/
We at FareShare GM are grateful for the support of our local community, including the team at Wright Robinson College. Their willingness to lend a hand during these challenging times has been truly inspiring.
Located only a mile from our warehouse in Gorton, Wright Robinson College has been working with us over the last month to support our food deliveries to frontline charities. Their efforts have helped ensure that those in need continue to receive the vital support they require, even during the school closures.
The team at Wright Robinson College is made up of approximately 30 staff members, including teachers, pastoral staff, and headteacher Mr. M Haworth. Led by Ms. H Thompson, director of Year 7, they have come together to share delivery shifts and make a real difference in the lives of those in their local community.
Their contributions have not gone unnoticed, and we believe that their example serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of community support. Together, we can make a difference in the lives of those around us, and we encourage others to follow in their footsteps and join our efforts to deliver food to frontline charities in Greater Manchester.
“I contacted FareShare to ask if there was anything we could do as a school to help during the pandemic. We have a number of minibuses that were just parked up not being used and a large number of staff who were willing to volunteer, so it was a perfect fit. We’re now taking two of our minibuses down twice a week to deliver food parcels to local charities. It benefits our little community and it’s given us all a feeling of real positivity.
The staff have really enjoyed it – it’s a great opportunity to get out of the house and into the community meeting different charities and making new connections.
Even though the school is now beginning to re-open we’re going to continue supporting FareShare with deliveries throughout this year. As a college we have always impressed upon our young people the need for resilience, teamwork and working with our local community to be the best that we can be, especially in the current climate.”
“Wright Robinson have been a delight to deal with. And they have got food out to organisations that couldn’t have otherwise collected. It’s been absolutely amazing to have their support.”
Helen Gorton
FareShare GM Collections Coordinator
Our experience tells us that much of the food aid work happening in neighbourhoods across Greater Manchester is led and sustained by charity volunteers. We send a heartfelt thank you to all the #foodheroes out there who are making sure that people in need get access to good food.
To celebrate #VolunteersWeek 2020, we’ll be sharing stories of our amazing volunteers every day this week.
Here at FareShare GM our volunteers are like a big, busy family. Eleven of our current volunteers have been with us for over a year, and they just keep coming back for more! Throughout this Volunteers’ Week, we want to take the time to thank and celebrate veteran volunteers who have been with us for some time now.
Our veteran volunteers come from all walks of life, but they are united by one common goal: helping their local community by donating food. Our veteran volunteers have helped FareShare GM donate thousands of meals to people in need, and we are extremely grateful for their ongoing dedication to our cause.
Veteran volunteers have also played a major role in helping us expand our food donation efforts across Greater Manchester. Thanks to veteran volunteers’ hard work, FareShare GM has been able to provide more necessary food donations at the same time as increasing its reach in the community.
Our experienced ‘veterans’ are full of knowledge and have been vital over the last few weeks in guiding and supporting our influx of new volunteers as we work hard to get food out to frontline charities during the lockdown. Some of our longest-serving team members are veteran volunteers who have been with us for so long that it’s hard to imagine life without them. For example, Glynis Platt (pictured above with Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham), has been a valued part of our customer service team for 8 years and counting.
Many of our veteran volunteers started out with a particular interest or goal in mind.For instance, Jackie Price joined us in 2017 and has stayed for the friendships and camaraderie.
“My first motivation was about giving back. Food was my interest, as a retired Home Economics teacher. Equally now, it’s the people I volunteer with – I can see everyone giving 100% and that’s a wonderful thing. The more I’ve got to know the work and the more responsibility I’ve been given, it makes me want to carry on. I like the social side – the annual barbecue and our Christmas event. Volunteering for me is about doing it because you want to.”
Jackie Price
Volunteer
Steve Kitcher, who joined us the same year, has a similar story:
“When I started volunteering I was looking for a commitment to keep myself active. I’ve become used to working in a team – it’s so different from the work situations I’ve been in before. I
’m fascinated by how much we get done in what can be challenging circumstances. I have a long journey which at times I don’t relish, but once I get to FareShare it’s great fun and that’s credit to the team.”
Steve Kitcher
Volunteer
We want to give a particularly special thank you at this time to our regular volunteers who must isolate themselves at home due to the coronavirus. 11% of our volunteers are aged 70 or over. Additionally, between them, they bestow an astounding 25 years of service to FareShare. We’re looking forward to welcoming them back and enjoying many more years of their company once the pandemic is over.
To celebrate #VolunteersWeek 2020, we’ll be sharing stories of our amazing volunteers every day this week. Check out our other food stories as well as our latest news updates at Fareshare Greater Manchester.
Since lockdown, we’re welcoming an influx of new volunteers willing to go the extra mile. Sometimes literally even, to help deliver food to our frontline charity members. Today, we’re celebrating our furlough volunteers.
Over the last 10 weeks, over 8 million people from all walks of life have found themselves in furlough by their employer. Moreover, research suggests that nearly a quarter have been dedicating some of their free time to volunteering for charity.
Here at FareShare Greater Manchester, we’ve welcomed a host of fantastic ‘furloughers’ to our volunteering family. For example, James Ward, who joins as a warehouse assistant in April:
“When I was furloughed, I registered to help at FareShare. I enjoy it – it’s knowing that I’m being helpful, and I’m fitter too! When customers come to collect, they’re always very grateful and say ‘keep up the good work’. It makes me feel part of the effort.”
James Ward
Warehouse Assistant
One of our new volunteers has even gone the extra mile – 91 in fact – to support us. Alice Murfitt, who joined in March, has recently finished running a mind-boggling seven half marathons in seven days to raise money for FareShare GM and Rainbows Children’s Hospice in the East Midlands.
“This is the first time I’ve volunteered for FareShare,” she said. “I’m so proud to know that I’m playing a key part in helping to tackle food poverty in and around Greater Manchester.
“The 7 half marathons in 7 days challenge was the first individual fundraising effort I’ve ever undertaken. I’ve always been a keen runner. It felt like the perfect time in my life to be able to do my part and give something back to two charities very close to my heart.
If anyone reading this is new to FareShare, or would like to get involved and volunteer too, I couldn’t recommend it enough. They have been one the most friendly and welcoming organisations I’ve ever been part of.”
Alice Murfitt
Volunteer
Alice has so far raised an amazing £4,400 and you can still donate to her fundraiser until August. What an incredible achievement!
To celebrate #VolunteersWeek2020, we’ll be sharing stories of our amazing volunteers every day this week.