A survey of North London foodbanks and charities reveals most are struggling to survive, reports James Cracknell

The Felix Project's Enfield warehouse (credit The Felix Project) — The Felix Project’s Enfield warehouse (credit The Felix Project)

Four-in-five foodbanks and community groups supplied by an Enfield-based charity fear they will soon struggle to meet growing demand, according to a new survey.

The Felix Project, London’s largest food redistribution charity, surveyed the organisations it supports with free produce across Enfield and beyond – with 83% of those responding admitting they worried how they would cope over the next twelve months and 57% even fearing they may be forced to close.

Those responding to the survey included foodbanks and pantries, community centres, homeless shelters, primary schools and faith organisations – all involved in supporting vulnerable people with essential groceries and household supplies.

The Felix Project is based at Great Cambridge Industrial Estate and collects unsold food from supermarkets for redistribution to other charities. It is one of two major suppliers of free food for charities in North London, alongside Food Bank Aid in Finchley.

Chief executive Charlotte Hill said: “We know the cost-of-living crisis is having a devastating effect on people’s lives and it is not going away, in fact it seems to just get worse.

“This survey was carried out before what was called ‘awful April’ when people saw hikes in their council tax, energy, water and broadband bills. This will have further squeezed people’s budgets, left them with even less to cover food and resulted in more anxiety about being able to afford to feed themselves and their families.

“The organisations we support are doing everything they can to help, but it is clear The Felix Project plays a vital role and I hope people and the food industry will help us continue to be there.”

Among the local foodbanks and charities supported by The Felix Project is Cooking Champions, which runs a range of support services from its base in Ponders End. Founder Clare Donovan told the Dispatch last month that despite inflation figures dropping significantly since their peak two-and-a-half years ago, the demand for food assistance had continued to increase.

“It just keeps going up,” said Clare, revealing that Cooking Champions last year provided almost 10,000 food packages to local people, double the 5,000 it supplied in 2022.

She continued: “A lot of smaller local charities are finding it really difficult and charities are having to reduce their hours or stop completely – which then has a big impact on those that stay open.”

Since launching five years ago Cooking Champions has never turned anyone away, but that has meant expanding in line with demand, which may soon be impossible to sustain.

“We are having to look closely at our current provision and questioning whether we are secure enough to continue, as demand is steadily increasing.”

Alongside this, Cooking Champions has seen a drop in donations and support recently. “Obviously people should only donate if they can afford to,” said Clare, “but I think a lot of people are struggling and it is affecting us.”

To support Cooking Champions:
Visit cookingchampions.uk

To support The Felix Project:
Visit thefelixproject.org

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