'We think we've hit rock bottom and then it gets much worse.'

Food bank manager Charlotte White shares her grave concerns with Shelagh Fogarty following food price inflation.

Still time to sign up for the first in-person #MoneyGuiders Scotland event at Aberdeen Arts Centre on 31 March! We will hear from local and national speakers about their response to the #CostOfLiving crisis.
Contact [email protected] if you would like to join us.

🚨 Money Guiders Scotland event

Sign up to hear our fantastic Financial Inclusion Lead, David Brownlee, talk about how community-based #CashFirst work can help end the need for food banks 👇🏼

Fantastic launch yesterday of Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea #moneyworries leaflets by IFAN UK - Independent Food Aid Network Abby and KCSC - Kensington & Chelsea Social Council including brilliant panel by Citizens Advice Kensington & Chelsea Nucleus Legal Advice Centre Crosslight Advice Campden Charities
Prioritising #cashfirst & #advice for residents 👏
worryingaboutmoney.co.uk/kensington-and…

73 community-focused projects across Scotland have received £1,5M in #NationalLottery funding.🤞

These grants help groups assist those most impacted by the rising cost-of-living and empower them to continue providing vital support. 🙏

Today, I am working with our new council leaders to create emergency cost of living action plans.

In the first 100 days of taking office, Labour councils will begin to ease the burden on working people.

Where Labour is in power, we deliver.

news.sky.com/story/labours-…

And here is why #CashFirst is so important.

#AssistConf2023

So pleased to say that the Argyll and Bute Flexible Food Fund and it’s focus on #CashFirst has WON the ASSIST FM Conference Community Focus Award!🎉
Amazing partnership work with Argyll and Bute Council Bute Advice Centre AliEnwegy & our IFAN UK - Independent Food Aid Network Food Orgs #AssistConf2023

It's inhumane that people are living like this when something could so easily be done.

And the cost of NOT acting will be far greater to society

Please support #OurEssentials #CashFirst #LivingIncome

Joseph Rowntree Foundation The Trussell Trust IFAN UK - Independent Food Aid Network

Megan Blake Ewan Gurr TILLY ROBINSON-MILES FRGS (she/her) 🌻 @LindsayGrahamUK Good Food in Argyll and Bute🍎🥗 Maria Marshall Polly Jones Cara Hilton Maddy Power Feeding Britain The Trussell Trust Scotland IFAN UK - Independent Food Aid Network #Cashfirst is not just an emergency response. It is about enabling people to thrive through having living incomes, be it from welfare or work. Poverty and destitution drive household food insecurity. It demands economic structural and systemic changes to reduce inequalities

Thanking IFAN UK - Independent Food Aid Network for running #CashFirst Zoom call. Great to hear so many places using their flyer and other means to help people access cash. Laura Chalmers Feeding Britain Inn Churches FoodWise (Leeds)

Save Money, Raise Money

Finally, a relatively quiet morning at the foodbank. 94 households served vs the 120+ we've become used to

Decrease likely due to the £301 COL payment given last week. When people are given financial support, they don't need food aid - this is the way it should be #cashfirst

Banks have lost nearly $1 trillion in deposits over the past year as money flowed into higher-yielding money-market funds. One company grabbing some of the cash: Apple.

#cashfirst is common sense. People using food banks are only the tip of the iceberg.

We’re delighted to be recipients of this vital funding🙌 Our Winter Warmer packs provide resources for 300+ ppl, helping with the rising costs of living #NationalLottery #CommunityMatters #CashFirst #DignifiedResponse

Today we celebrated the launch of the final report for our inquiry - Cash or Food? Exploring effective responses to destitution - among friends and colleagues in Parliament

This report has been a year in the making and we are thrilled to be able to share it with you

Thank you to my colleague IFAN UK - Independent Food Aid Network Maria Marshall for providing oral evidence to APPG on Ending the Need for Food Banks inquiry as well as leading work on our written submission. Good to see IFAN UK - Independent Food Aid Network contributions featured in this important report shining a spotlight on #CashFirst approaches

Desperately need this sort of action in the new NOC Lichfield District Council to support the 900+ people per month that Lichfield foodbank support. #cashfirst The Trussell Trust

The speakers for Day 2 are:

09.55 - Sara Spencer, CPAG Scotland

10:20 - Maria Marshall, IFAN UK - Independent Food Aid Network

10:45 - Stirling Council

11:15 - Evelyn Miller

11:40 - Barry Fisher, Keep Scotland Beautiful

12:00 - Vikki Morris from Evans Vanodine, CHSA

#assistconf2023

Great speakers at this #MoneyGuiders event today and to hear from Caroline Hastings (twice in one week!) about Aberdeenshire Council partnership working around the ‘Worrying About Money?’ Leaflet #CashFirst #MGSAberdeen

Brilliant to be here today to talk about #cashfirst responses and learn about work being done in Scotland by CPAG Scotland Stirling Council Good Food in Argyll and Bute🍎🥗

SoFi puts their customers first. To put more money in your pocket, SoFi Checking & Savings doesn’t charge any account fees.

Thank you everyone who’s responded in some way to our tweet. Not all agree but it’s interesting how many do. Maybe enough for other retailers to be mindful of their words when promoting (because they will profit, despite suggested altruism), donations. Still, #CashFirst is best.

🧵 VCSE & public sector lead local in-kind responses to poverty such as warmbanks, foodbanks & other food aid support, energy vouchers & the provision of other types of good must not distract from local #cashfirst response to poverty.

Our latest data (ifanuk.org/430f84s) demonstrates just how vital it is for UK Prime Minister #FarmToForkSummit to prioritise a #cashfirst approach to #foodinsecurity ....
Sustain The Food Foundation ReadiFood Earlsfield Foodbank Broke Not Broken

In Manchester and Stoke-on-Trent this is being felt by foodbank workers as overwhelming. Our 'Running on Empty' report discusses this in more detail & recommends a move towards #cashfirst approaches - if you'd like to read more DM me or email: [email protected]

Thank you Maria Marshall for your work on this! Pleased that @rbkc is supporting #cashfirst through Kensington + Chelsea Foundation and our excellent advice providers like Nucleus Legal Advice Centre

Delighted to be in Westminster today on behalf of Local Government Association (LGA) to launch crucial new report from APPG on Ending the Need for Food Banks & The Trussell Trust highlighting importance of #CashFirst .
Worth a read for anyone in agreement it's time to end the need food banks 👇

Challenging presentation by Dee Woods Deirdre⭐Dee⭐Woods & Abby Preston IFAN UK - Independent Food Aid Network at #FFS2023 highlighting how many food-poor people not reached by #FoodBanks & calling for #CashFirst approaches and local #FoodSystems that value food producers
#foodsovereignty
CAWR Coventry Food Ethics Council

Good to do this interview with Shelagh Fogarty just now. People need to know how bad the situation is. On every IFAN UK - Independent Food Aid Network call so many heartbreaking stories are shared by members across the country. It's getting worse.
#cashfirst solutions needed. And needed soon.

.The Trussell Trust Scotland will join #MoneyGuiders Scotland at an event on 13 June to talk about the development of community-based #CashFirst volunteering to help end the need for #foodbanks

Money and Pensions Service (MaPS)

Find out more and sign up here: eventbrite.co.uk/e/cash-first-v…