Volunteers needed in Preston and Lancashire for summer food collection

Residents of Preston and Lancashire are being asked to volunteer to help two leading charities support children and families this summer.

From Thursday 15 July until Saturday 17 July charities FareShare and the Trussell Trust will be collecting long-life food in large Tesco stores across the UK as part of a special Tesco Food Collection to support children and families throughout the summer holidays.

Food donated by Tesco customers during the collection will go to support food banks in the Trussell Trust’s network and to local charities supplied by FareShare, including holiday clubs providing healthy meals and activities to youngsters outside of term-time.

Tesco will once again top up customer donations made in store by 20 per cent in cash to aid the two charities in their work.

Volunteers are needed to encourage shoppers to leave their donations in the collection point at the front of stores, as shoppers are more likely to donate if volunteers are present, and to spread awareness of the collection through social media. The appeal for volunteers comes ahead of Volunteers Week which celebrates the work of volunteers in the UK.

Jeff Green, Development Manager at FareShare Lancashire and Cubmria said: “More people than ever are struggling to put food on the table and will do for months if not years to come as the economy recovers.

“We have seen a huge increase in people turning to their local grassroots community groups for support and demand for food remains high.

“We would be incredibly grateful to anyone who is able to volunteer just two hours of their time this year to encourage more shoppers to donate much needed long-life food to those who need it most.”

See the foodbanks near you requiring help and the items needed

The summer collection is in addition to the pre-Christmas Tesco Food Collection, which takes place annually at the end of November. It is the second year running that Tesco has run a summer Food Collection; following on from a special collection held last summer as the charities were faced with a rise in need caused by Covid-19.

To find out more about volunteering during the Tesco Food Collection and to sign up visit here.