A new community pantry is set to open in Newport to provide affordable food for residents who need it.
Members of The Pyle Street Pantry will be able to visit the pantry once a week and take their pick of the produce on offer, for a contribution of £5.
Based at Newport Congregational Church, the pantry aims to give those in need a helping hand by providing food at a lower price than can be found in supermarkets.
It is expected to open its doors around Easter time. Applications will not be taken until the pantry goes live and this will be announced in due course.
Rev Mark Evans said:
“We are very excited about opening The Pyle Street Pantry having seen other pantries on the Island, which are a breath of fresh air and a life line of support for people in this time.
“We have always worked in partnership to serve the community and particularly feeding people over the last seven years, be that supermarkets, compassionate people that want to support and look after the Island’s vulnerable.
“The Pyle Street Pantry will be a collaboration working with many people locally and nationally to provide good quality food and assistance as we work together in these times. Our vision is to create a ‘Community in unity’.”
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The pantry has been supported by the Isle of Wight Council through its successful connect4communities programme, with funding from the Department for Work and Pensions.
It is the 4th to open on the Island with at least 3 more planned.
Councillor Debbie Andre, the council’s Cabinet member for children’s services, said:
“Being able to get groceries at a lower rate than can be found anywhere else means anyone can access basics like food, which many of us take for granted.
“By providing this ‘helping hand’ approach community pantries can help people who find themselves in a difficult financial situation.
“Rising costs and economic uncertainty means many Island people are struggling to cope, so this provision has never been more important.”
Information about where community pantries are currently located is published on the council’s cost of living webpages at https://beta.iow.gov.uk/keep-the-island-safe/cost-of-living/food/.
10+ years of Tory government have left the church feeding the poor once again. The kind of thing you’d have thought would have been consigned to the pages of the history books.
there were poor under labour and every government that has ever existed – stop blaming one group
instead of leeching off the state, which has been the usual board of fare for so many over the last 40 years of benign inflation and interest rates they could have supported theirselves – now we are in a different economic cycle and unless you get off your backside and support yourself – you are going to see your standard of life drop
There has always been poor. I just thought we’d moved on from having the church feed them.
We seem to have a new banking system under this government – food banks.
I was self employed all my life I only receive the basic state pension £142 a week yes £142 a week I worked hard all my life didn’t drink gamble or smoke I bought my own house and saved a little I do not get pension credits or any other form of benifit my council tax is £2000 a year I struggle to but I do so why can’t these people who claim every benifit under the sun manage they should cut there cloth accordingly
if you are retired- sell the house, rent a small place -enjoy the proceeds of your home sale and if it all runs out before you die – claim universal credit, which you will get.
Those who claim and get every benefit going know how to beat the system
your (not) problem is that you’ve worked all your life and probably hard to.
The low life scrounging scum who’ve done f all ever are the ones that’s laughing and get everything going and couldn’t give a toss about all the rising cost as they just hold out their greedy hands and get more lashed into them .
whos the fools ,,, exactly