Pret York Station

WHAT DO WE DO? FIND OUT MORE ABOUT POPPY’S STORY. Have you heard anything about what we do at Help Brings Hope, the things we give out or the people we work with? There are a bunch of reasons why people need our help and this is just one example. Poppy was a single mum being moved into temporary accommodation, she had been part of an abusive relationship and came to us scared, feeling up against the clock and more vulnerable than ever. It was the first time she had heard of us and was looking after a young baby at the time. Poppy first got in touch with us at Help Brings Hope after her and her family were moved into a local hostel, where she had been left with nothing for her and nothing for her baby after having fled a domestic violence. She was panicking and scared as it was the evening at this point and she had no food or nappies, or formula milk to feed her baby. We didn’t want her going out to pick up items on the evening, as she was already scared and feeling alone. I know this from experience, I don’t know if you have ever had somebody that is so reliant on you and no way to care for them. She soon felt comfortable talking to me, especially as I had gone through domestic violence myself and my empathy helped her to feel more at ease. At Help Brings Hope, we have supported her with clothing, food, toiletries, bedding to ensure that none of them have to go without the essentials. And now in 2021, she is moving out of the hostel and into a flat with her baby, a fresh start for them both with new memories and at Help Brings Hope, we are honored to have the pleasure of being part of this journey. Before we say good bye, we will be leaving these two with one final gift and making sure that they have the best possible start in their new home and will be there, by their sides while they get set up in their new home .

I am reusable have our very own community food bank here in York. We have been going for over 2 plus years now and started up due to covid due to the demand. We feed over a 100 plus people a day 7 days a week. But also trying to combat food waste by reusing food in the community.

The Collective Sharehouse (TCS) provides a 'give and take as you feel' food, personal and household cleaning products service with dignity for families in need in our community. We complement the work of other similar organisations in the city but in an area which has been overlooked in the past. We define dignity as offering all of our visitors and families the same choice as those fortunate enough to be in regular, well paid work. This includes a consistent, broad and balanced selection of non-perishable food stuffs, personal care and household goods, complimented by robust fruit and vegetables, and fresh bread when available. The opportunity to always be able to select from, and contribute to, that wide range of goods defines our ethos: ‘give and take as you feel’. We have had a fabulous response from our local community - communicated by word of mouth and a thoughtful approach to use of social media and a wide network of community & health professionals -and we are always developing ways in which to sustain that giving. We are currently sharing goods at an average of 80 occasions each week. We are therefore providing vital resources for local vulnerable families in addition to signposting expert information/advice which we hope will help them back to independence. Donations are inevitably unpredictable, however, in timing, volume and nature. Further funding will allow us to supplement these fantastic donations in order to sustain the dignity, breadth and choice our community families need and deserve, for as long as there is a clear need in our community. As an organisation we intend to support, through monitoring need and reflecting with our community, progress toward the development of an integrated approach to food poverty in our city working with other voluntary organisations.