Do something different this Christmas by taking part in a Northampton food bank’s reverse advent calendar

A Northampton food bank, in urgent need of donations ahead of Christmas, is asking generous souls to take part in a different kind of advent calendar this year.

Weston Favell Food Bank, currently based at Emmanuel Family Rooms in Weston Favell Shopping Centre, has launched its reverse advent calendar appeal.

Volunteers have put together a list of 20 items they are in need of ahead of the festive season. The idea being that donors collect one item a day in the same way you would open one door a day on a traditional advent calendar.

Julie Parsons, a fundraiser at the food bank, said it is the first year they have done an appeal like this after it was recommended by the Trussell Trust.

However, they have decided to adapt it slightly by releasing an overall list, rather than a specific item for each day and they have made it shorter than the traditional 24 days of an advent calendar. Julie says this will help them collate and redistribute the items before the end of traditional advent calendars on Christmas Eve. It also gives donors the option to donate one or two items rather than the full 20.

Julie said: “We have lots of things we need, but we haven’t put pasta or rice on the list because we have stacks of those.

“If people want to donate a couple of items, as we know the cost of living crisis is hitting a lot of people, or if they want to buy in bulk, then we would be really appreciative.”

As part of this, Weston Favell Food Bank volunteers will be at Mereway and Weston Favell Tesco stores on November 30, December 1 and December 2, to collect items that donors are willing to give. Julie also added that Tesco kindly top up the donations collected in store by 20 percent, in cash, which she says helps to buy stock they might not already have.

The food bank team says they will appreciate anything anyone can give, especially during a really tough time.

Julie added: “We had a warning from the Trussell Trust that this is going to be a hard winter and we heard that heating prices will go up in January.

“Donations have gone down since the cost of living crisis and we are one of the food banks in the whole country identified for having to spend the most money.”

Despite the struggles, the food bank is there for anyone and everyone who may need help this Christmas. Julie was also keen to encourage older people to reach out and get the help they need. She says they often think they are not entitled to help due to pensions, but Julie’s message is that anyone can reach out for support.

The food bank will be open on December 20 and December 22 as its last days before Christmas. Any donations collected as part of the reverse advent calendar will be handed out to visitors to the food bank in the week before Christmas.