Ryde Town Councillor, Michael Lilley, is launching an awareness campaign on the real poverty and hardship many families and individuals are faced with in Ryde on a daily basis.
On Shrove Tuesday (28th February), a national Big Pancake Day organised by the Church Urban Fund is taking place to highlight food poverty.
Cllr Lilley is going to be tossing as many pancakes as he can in 5 minutes to raise funds and awareness on poverty in Ryde at Grace Church, Marlborough Road on Tuesday 28th at 11:00. This event will raise money for Ryde Food Bank and celebrate their important work.
This part of the National Big Pancake Day campaign across the UK is to raise awareness about families who do not have food for an evening meal and children going to school without breakfast due to poverty.
Cllr Lilley said:
“Ryde Foodbank is based in my ward, Ryde East, and Ryde East along with Ryde South has some of the highest poverty on the Island and is within the top 10 of most deprived areas in UK.
“The film ‘I, Daniel Blake’ by Ken Loach recently won the 2017 most outstanding British Movie Award at the Baftas. The film highlighted the daily struggle of people living on benefits and that daily struggle happens in Ryde and across the Island. It is not on a movie screen but here in Ryde everyday”.
A spokesperson for the Isle of Wight Foodbank has said:
“Food poverty is a hidden issue on the Island and we are extremely grateful to Cllr Lilley for raising awareness on national Big Pancake Day. In the last six months, the foodbank has provided emergency food to 347 adults and 223 children in the Ryde area alone. The reason they are in crisis varies from low income, benefit changes, debt or sickness”.
Cllr Lilley added:
“I went through a period of my life 30 years ago when I was a single parent dad with 3 children and can relate to the I, Daniel Blake film. I had hoped in my dreams that in 2017 that things had changed, but in fact they are worse. Ryde and other parts of Isle of Wight have families, older people, individuals and children that are going hungry. We need to come together and fight poverty on island.
“It is a sad fact that we need Food Banks and we shouldn’t but without them people would starve. Help them by donating money to them through donating food and money”.
More information about the Isle of Wight Foodbank can be found at www.theisleofwightfoodbank.com.
