College staff donate food packages to families in need

A donation point was set up in the Ambition Centre at Telford College’s Wellington campus last month for staff to give non-perishable food items.

Tinned foods such as soups, baked beans, vegetables and chopped tomatoes were collected, alongside packets of pasta, spaghetti, biscuits, rice, crisps, lentils and many more.

They have now been handed over to Interfaith Telford, to sort into care packages for local families.

“Interfaith Telford operates as an out-of-hours service to support the local authority’s crisis team whenever their offices are closed,” said Aneeta Hazir, Telford College’s employer partnership manager.

“We know this is a difficult and expensive time of the year for many people, so we wanted to do our bit to provide food for members of the local community who really need it. We’re grateful to everyone who donated items.”

Telford Interfaith administrator Les Pointer, who collected the donations, said: “Telford and Wrekin Interfaith Council is a registered charity which has been assisting with food poverty since the outbreak of the Covid 19 pandemic.

“In 2021 it became the official out of hours emergency food service for Telford and Wrekin Council. With groups of volunteers from many different faith and cultural backgrounds, it has delivered over 400,000 meals to those in need around the borough.”

The group operates from 5pm onwards each evening, and all weekend. It also covers all holiday periods, which means support is available 365 days a year.

Interfaith Telford chair, Councillor Raj Mehta, said: “Our mission is to keep unity in the community by bringing all faiths and non-faiths, cultures, and community groups together to support one another.”