Foodbank celebrates second anniversary

Foodbank celebrates second anniversary

A special anniversary lunch was held at the Town Hall to honour the work of the volunteers of Rochdale Foodbank.

Around 80 volunteers and other guests, including the Mayor Carol Wardle, Leader of the Council, Councillor Richard Farnell, and Lynda Battarbee, North West Region Coordinator of The Trussell Trust, were present.

Iain Wight, Chairman of Trustees of Rochdale Foodbank, in a short review of the work of the Foodbank, commended the vital work of the volunteers in ensuring that clients were able to access food when they were in a crisis. He said: “You have helped 7,500 clients since we opened our doors in 2012, providing an astonishing service to our community.”

Councillor Farnell, whilst bemoaning the need for foodbanks in such a wealthy country as the UK, thanked the volunteers on behalf of all the clients who had benefitted from the foodbank, and urged them to continue to do what they had been doing so well. He said: “I hope we don’t have to come back for a third anniversary, but I can see that foodbanks will be needed for years to come. Please keep up the good work.”

Mayor Wardle presented certificates of ‘stickability’ to around 40 volunteers who have been with the foodbank since the beginning.