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Silhouettes of eight people, against different coloured backgrounds

This is a guest series, of stories that challenge and change. These are intentionally contrary stories that push back against negative ideas, and force us all to re-examine negative stigmas and stereotypes. They are longer than our usual blogs, and we encourage you to read them when you have the time to do so in full.

These stories are told by Stef Benstead, a social justice campaigner, Manchester Poverty Truth Commissioner, and an expert on the mistreatment of disabled people.

Silhouettes of eight people, against different coloured backgrounds

Meet Sarah

She’s definitely a scrounger. In fact, the street is full of them. You could make a programme about it.

They claim to be ill, and even walk slowly as if to make the point, but they’ve been seen to strim a lawn when they want to. Two of them are active smokers, so their difficulties are their own fault: if they stopped smoking, they’d have more health and more money. You can’t take seriously any incapacity for work that’s based on smoking. 

Another one has been seen dancing in her garden, yet says she has major back pain. You couldn’t make it up. They’re all cheats. It’s no wonder the country is going to the dogs.

What people think they see

Sarah is one of the ones who can often be seen out gardening. And not just her own garden; she’ll be out in her neighbours’ gardens too, helping with those. Sometimes she’s behind a lawnmower; sometimes she’s digging out dock and brambles; sometimes she’s cutting down trees. You might see her out with a cocker spaniel, taking him to the local park, or walking to the nearby shops.

Most assessors, of course, know exactly what she is. But it only takes one to miss it, and let Sarah slip through the net, and give her benefits she shouldn’t get for longer than is appropriate. 

The others know that someone as young and healthy-looking as her, bar paralysis or other identifiable injury, has no real reason to use a wheelchair. And when they ask her what she does, and she says that she does research on disability and social security, all their initial impressions are confirmed.

Who can measure another's pain?

This is someone who knows the benefits system well; who has made a practice of studying it; who has learnt the words to say and how to say them. Her words, therefore, can’t be trusted. 

She is saying what she knows will get her benefits, not what is true about herself. So she is rejected for benefits, on the grounds that she looks healthy and therefore must be healthy, and she knows too much about her alleged illnesses and the benefits system to be telling the truth about them.

Of course, if you asked someone to declare how much pain another person was in based on how they look, they wouldn’t be able to do it.

Nor could they tell you how much dizziness that person feels, or whether it is more of a vertigo or a fug in the head than tingly dizzy. They  couldn’t tell you whether the person feels sick, or hungry, has stomach pain. 

You can’t look at someone and know anything about a vast range of health problems, injuries, and symptoms. 

But that doesn’t stop you trying.

Rare conditions and lazy judgments

Sarah claims to have a condition that means her greatest pain and exhaustion come not at the time of activity, but a day or two later.

But that’s ludicrous. Whoever heard of such a thing? Certainly not any of the benefit assessors or appeal panel members who decide whether or not she deserves benefits.

They are of the opinion that if Sarah’s health declines, then that would be the appropriate time to claim benefits. But if she herself reports feeling fine now, in the moment, then she is fine.

And nor have any of the politicians who design benefit assessment processes heard of such a thing. What they have heard of, though, and told themselves, is people who have wrong attitudes and beliefs, who would be fit for work and able to look after themselves if only someone would tell them so.

When people like Sarah go out and mow lawns, or attend multi-hour meetings, it just reaffirms to observers that these people aren’t really ill. When they want to do something, they can; it’s only when they don’t want to do something that suddenly they are too ill.

It is a shocking moral laxity that needs to be rebuked and punished, not praised and rewarded, but sadly too many politicians of all stripes have been too lax in the benefits system. The assessment criteria need to be tightened, the money that is paid out needs to be cut, and these people need to be required to prepare and look for work in return for the money they receive.

Meet Rosie...

It is especially important that all this happens, so that people like Rosie can be properly protected and cared for. Rosie has a genetic condition called hypermobility Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS). This affects collagen, and as collagen is everywhere in the body her condition has an impact on everything.

It is said that if you were to take everything else out of the body, the collagen remaining would create a perfect replica of what was there. It is in your skin, your blood vessels, your ligaments and tendons, and the fascia that embed and surround every organ and tissue. It is no surprise, then, that when collagen goes wrong, nothing goes right.

Understanding your own symptoms

Rosie experiences a wide range of diffuse symptoms. Fatigue, pain, nausea, dizziness, muscle weakness, difficulty eating, digestive problems, generic inflammation, and more.

It is difficult to test for and prove these things. But when they come together like this, alongside hypermobile joints and evidence of circulatory problems such as Reynaud’s Syndrome and Postural Tachycardia – all things which can be tested and demonstrated – then the diagnosis of hEDS is easy.

And then a whole load of seemingly nebulous and generic symptoms actually make sense and are explained and explainable.

Having a diagnosis makes a huge difference. It means that Rosie understands what is going on in her body when her lymph glands swell and she develops a sore throat and feeling of internal inflammation.

It’s not ‘flu or any other virus; it’s what her body does when she’s over-worked, and it can therefore be avoided by reducing activity levels to keep within what her body can do. Where a respiratory virus is avoided by being careful in crowded places and observing good hygiene, overwork needs a different response. So it is important to know the difference, in order to safeguard properly against it.

It means that when Rosie starts to feel depressed, despairing, or panicked, she knows it’s not usually about her emotional situation. It’s about having done too much over too long a period of time, and her body is rebelling and going on strike in defence against the over-bearing brain.

When the usual remedy for depression is to go out and be active, Rosie now knows that her depression is physical, and that the remedy is to go to bed. This in turn means that she can now stave off suicidality, by knowing that the answer is not to work harder but to work less.

Post-exertional malaise

Stock image: a trowel on grass

Rosie experiences a classic symptom: post-exertional malaise (PEM). This symptom seems to be poorly understood by doctors, let alone benefit assessors, for whom the concept that activity now might cause worse symptoms tomorrow rather than in the moment is apparently bizarre. 

But for people with Rosie’s and related conditions, it is extremely familiar. Doctors who understand Rosie’s condition usually have more familiarity with PEM, but still it is difficult to get across to someone who has never experienced it that you might feel okay today doing X, but tomorrow you will feel awful.

Whilst the answer to Rosie’s physical depression is to rest, that is nevertheless a boring and meaningless existence. And that itself brings depression.

So sometimes, Rosie has to find physical activity to do, that is enjoyable and meaningful, to counter depression that comes from doing, and being able to do, little. For Rosie, that might include gardening. Often this is done sat on the floor with a hand tool, because standing up causes Rosie’s heart rate to soar, and that is a sure trigger for PEM.

When the body battery crashes

One time, Rosie took out a lawnmower, creeping behind it very slowly, in order to help out a neighbour whose birthday was the next day and whose grass was overlong. Rosie’s heartrate hit 170bpm. The targeted heart rate for her age during high-intensity activity is 160.

Activity like that makes Rosie ill the next day. She has fibromyalgia as a consequence of over-working, physically and mentally, in her early 20s when she didn’t yet know that she had hEDS. This flares up as a result of activity and, despite her opioid patches, leaves her pacing the floor in tears if she has really overdone things.

Her body seems to act like it has a virus when it has done too much, with all the sore throat and fuzzy head and aching, heavy limbs and swollen glands that come with it.

Rosie recently acquired a second-hand fitness tracker, which confirms that overactivity makes her ‘body battery’ crash and stay down for days. Her resting heart-rate also increases during these periods.

Sincerity and scorn in one place

Someone like Rosie, presenting to a benefit assessor with only the list of generic symptoms, is easily dismissed as a fraud and malingerer.

The assessor, despite allegedly being trained to assess functionality and not diagnosis, nevertheless treats completely differently two people with the exact same symptoms, but one has a clear tested diagnosis, and the other has no diagnosis.

One is taken  seriously and even recognised as having a lifelong condition. The other is scorned and rejected. The very same symptoms that confirm a genetic condition in the one are taken as evidence of laziness and hypochondria in the other.

See Sarah and Rosie together...

But Rosie is the same person as that malingerer, Sarah, whom we discussed earlier.

You can’t see any of Rosie’s symptoms: her pain levels; her fatigue; her brainfog; her internal inflammation, sore throat, and swollen glands; her drained ‘body battery’ or raised resting heart rate; the way her heart rate shoots up just because she’s upright. A tilt-table test proves the Postural Tachycardia (PoTS) (a heart rate that shoots up when upright), but not the actual debilitating symptoms it causes for Rosie, which might be different for someone else. 

And when a doctor does a simple version of the test, asking Rosie to move from seated to standing, they have generally failed to account for the fact that for someone like Rosie, with severe PoTS, just being seated rather than lying down has already elevated her heart rate, so the scope for her heart to go even higher when standing is limited.

If they think they’re treating Sarah, not Rosie, then they dismiss the evidence for PoTS and tell her that her problems are all down to a lack of fitness.

Who do you see?

A graphic of two overlapping head silhouettes, one in pink, one blue

So the politician, the benefit assessor, the complaining neighbour, and even some doctors only see Sarah.

They never realise they’re dealing with Rosie. They never realise the harm that they cause with their misguided advice, such as to be active when Rosie desperately needs rest, which just makes her physical illness and therefore mental health even worse.

They never realise the impact of their misguided refusal to give Rosie enough money to live off in the belief that going out and getting work is what will make Rosie better, rather than driving her to such physical illness that she despairs of life.

They never realise the damage they cause when they phone the ‘benefit fraud’ hotline, to report Rosie for fraud, because they only see Sarah and not the desperate illness underneath.

In telling her story for this blog, Rosie remained seated with her legs on a footstool to help counter her PoTS. Keeping her legs horizontal helps to let her body know that it really doesn’t need to send the heart-rate so high. Nevertheless, Rosie’s heart spent most of the 30 minutes involved above 120bpm. She was suffering from particularly bad PEM, having over-done things whilst spending time with her two nieces over a week before, and from which her body had not yet recovered.

Dangers are caused when politicians do not understand people

This is the reality behind people like Sarah, and the neighbours you see out walking a dog or strimming their lawn or dancing in their garden.

This is why you will hear them sometimes talk about attending meetings. You see them engage in activity that brings meaning and joy to their life, enabling them to have a reason to keep going. What you don’t see is the impact on their body: the pain, the exhaustion, the inflammation, the inability to eat, the difficulty walking, the vertigo and dizziness and nausea.

You don’t know the price that these people pay to participate at least some times, on their terms, at their discretion.

This is nothing like attending work at someone else’s discretion, without the opportunity to engage only as and when able, or to rest and still remain financially secure.

But until politicians and public understand what it’s really like to be chronically ill, people like Rosie and Sarah will continue to be harmed by the dangerous policies.

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Your Local Pantry, Feeding Britain and others are working together to prevent hunger, offer dignity and choice, and co-design a national exit strategy from dependence on foodbanks

The past few years have presented a great many challenges for the country, felt perhaps most keenly by people on low incomes.

We know that all too many households are struggling to afford even the basic costs of living. We hear from parents who are skipping meals to feed their children; from people who are needing to seek support for the first time in their lives; from pensioners who are making the choice between heating and eating; and from people working multiple jobs, who are still unable to make ends meet. 

But across the country, people are coming together around food and with a shared determination to help make change happen.

Communities, friends and neighbours are sharing their resolve and ideas – and across the voluntary and community sector new partnerships are being forged and innovative models of food support are being introduced. 

A toddler in a pushchair holds a box of rice, at a Your Local Pantry

Pantries: a sense of belonging

Feeding Britain and Your Local Pantry are working to develop Pantries which provide members with access to nutritious food, in a dignified setting, with wraparound support on site.

In return for a few pounds each visit, Pantry members can fill their baskets with a broad range of fresh, chilled or frozen, longlife, and household goods, often valued at around £25. Members save £21 per visit on average, and this helps them to stretch their budgets further, and keep their heads above water from week to week.

But Pantries are about so much more than financial savings. Pantries also help members to build dignity, economic independence and choice, and prevent people from needing to rely on crisis food parcels.

They also strengthen people’s sense of belonging and being connected to their community, and have been shown to improve physical and mental health, and food variety. Wraparound support services address additional issues that people are facing, to help them back on their feet long-term.

A member reaches for a bag of salad at Hope Pantry in Merthyr Tydfil

Pantries: places of community

Both Feeding Britain and Your Local Pantry are seeing the impact of these projects. As one member said: “This place helps so much, it just takes that little bit of pressure off. I don’t think I would be coping very well without it. It feels more like a community shop than a foodbank, that takes pressure off too – it makes it easier to walk through the door.” 

In Merthyr Tydfil – an area where 10% of adults have gone hungry, and 28% have struggled to access food – Your Local Pantry and Feeding Britain are working together to support the Hope Pantry, which is part of the Your Local Pantry Network. This Pantry is open two days per week, and members pay £3.50 per visit. Support from Feeding Britain has enabled Hope Pantry to secure a reliable, local, high quality supply of fruit and vegetables to serve their 224 Pantry members, as well as to pilot a similar arrangement for meat – adding to the sense of being a food co-operative which combines members’ collective purchasing power to improve their access to low-cost but good food.

So much more than just food

Heidi, the Hope Pantry Manager told us: “Hope Pantry is much more than just food, it’s grown into a community, where members have made friends, look out for each other, share life together. The impact on the well-being of our members is financial, physical & emotional. 

Partnering with both YLP and Feeding Britain has added value to our pantry. We have good working relationships with a number of local businesses, having been able to trial weekly purchasing of fruit & veg, as well as more recently fresh butcher meat. This is important to us, to keep money in the local economy, and provide healthy nutritious food. Both have resulted in longer term weekly arrangements with the suppliers.”

The greengrocer that supplies Hope Pantry with produce says: “I didn’t know such a provision existed, it’s good to be able to help with fresh seasonal fruit & vegetables. Knowing we have a regular order with the pantry is very helpful to us as a small business.”

Dignity, choice and hope

Feeding Britain and Your Local Pantry feel that projects like the Hope Pantry could play a crucial role in a future shaped by dignity, hope and choice; and help to prevent another decade of lengthening queues for, and growing dependency upon, emergency food parcels.

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Powerful and amazing things happen when people who want change come together.

We’ve seen that time and time again… and we’ve been reminded of that truth once more, thanks to a fantastic new project in Sussex.

People gathering for a hearing

We know the cost of living scandal continues to harm our lowest-income communities, and in recent months, a group of residents of Lewes, East Sussex, have been coming together to see what they can do.

They’ve been discussing the impact on their lives, and looking at what changes could be made, in a project called Feeling the Pinch! Have Your Say. The work was coordinated by Lewes District Food Partnership (LDFP), and you can read the group’s report here.

This blog looks at the impact it had for people involved, and then some of the practicalities of how it operated.

We’ll hear directly from three people: Ruby, who helped set the group up, and two people who took part: Claire, and another participant who would prefer not to be named. We hope the blog will help other groups or communities minded to do similar work, and also do justice to the powerful work in Lewes.

Some of the issues highlighted during the Feeling The Pinch project

What happened?

Over two months, 11 local residents with experience of financial struggle met fortnightly for workshops. They jointly explored challenges they faced and ways they had found to survive. They then moved on to identify the systemic problems underlying their experiences, and to develop recommendations for change.

The project culminated in an ‘Inequality Truth Hearing’ bringing the panelists together with representatives from local councils, the voluntary and statutory sectors.

The result was a fascinating and powerful discussion, with lots of lively, respectful interaction and generation of ideas for practical next steps.

Let’s hear from participants: What was the appeal for you in taking part? How did it go? What did people talk about ,and what did you get from it?

Participant 1:

“I have really enjoyed it, getting to know other people and knowing you are not the only one in this situation.

“When more people talk about it, it means you can talk more openly. The shame is not there. It makes the community less isolated. We’ve met people we might not meet in everyday life, and I’ve enjoyed that. 

“In Lewes, there are quite a lot of rich people but also hidden poor people. It’s nice to know you are not the only one.

“A common theme for a lot of people was that we were all carers. Being a carer for someone seems to be a significant reason for being in poverty, because you cannot earn.

“With the final session we had – It made them seem more human, the people in authority.”

Claire:

“I had picked up a leaflet at food bank, and was determined to attend and find out more, because I had had it up to my eyeballs with not being able to express how all this felt. 

“Being able to talk about it is part of the solution. I did not tell many people in my friendship group that I was going to a food bank, but when I was doing the workshops I started telling people I attended a food bank and I was doing these workshops.

“It’s given me a lot to talk about and think about. People are surprised when their own circle is being affected. Nobody was expecting a solution, but we keep the conversation going. 

“I found I was more relaxed with people experiencing the same issues. We were just all human beings, and didn’t have to keep explaining everything. 

“For the final session, everybody that could come, came. We were very determined to finish this project, and there were wonderful people to meet and speak to. When the participants spoke, we came across as the authorities of our own lives, with our own opinions. It was a much better atmosphere. We did not have a bunch of professionals telling us what to think, or say, or do. I felt like an equal. People are usually either amazed about you, or speak down to you. The conversation has to change.

“I do not want it to finish here. We are speaking to more people interested in how it was set up.

“More and more, I feel like I am the community. I am this country. The people I meet; we are ‘the country’. There are not special people who are ‘the country’, but we are not hearing enough from so many people. We need to look down the telescope, because it’s my country, it’s my Lewes, it’s my life.

Issues raised during the project

What happens next?

Ruby:

“We want to continue doing this work and expand it so we can allow it to become a natural part of how the council interacts with residents: authentic engagement, not just putting out requests for feedback – regular spaces for people to come together. We are engaging with the council and are fortunate that they want to see that embedded.

“Communities are suffering from the rising cost of living. Groups sprung up in covid and it was quite neighbourly, but with the cost of living it’s much more closed.”

Ruby, from Lewes Food District Partnership

What advice would you give to other groups looking to do work like this?

Ruby:

“Be okay about not having the time or resources you might want. Things like Poverty Truth Commissions can be long projects with hundreds of thousands of pounds. We felt a bit overwhelmed, but we would say ‘go for it’. 

“Make sure you talk to someone experienced around the ethics of it. We had Jane and sought advice. Don’t be overwhelmed and don’t think you have to do a huge thing. We prioritised having a clear, ethical guideline, and we are hoping to create a toolkit that other groups could use. If one project has done something really good, pass it on. 

“We made sure it wasn’t a case of “tell me all the shocking things that have happened in your life”. It was very strength-based. It’s about what we bring to the table.

“We didn’t want to put anyone on the spot, so it felt very natural – just a group of people sharing their thoughts and experiences. There was no feeling that people had to prove why they were there. It’s all about being human beings, around the table, and building connections.”

Claire:

“I’m quite big on the ethics. There was an ethical framework. Also, we always had a proper lunch – and we were paid. Our time is as valuable as anyone else’s, and there’s a dignity and respect in that.

“Also there was nothing attached to it like faith or religion, or what you used to be. We were all together. There was nothing attached to what we had to do.”

Participant 1:

“Because I was brought up very poor, and there was a lot of shame, I just do not want other people to be like that, spending their whole lives in shame. Just take the shame away. I want to be involved because I really feel quite passionate about it. I just want to keep going. I want other people to be able to make their own communities and feel they’re not on their own.”

Background

Lewes District Food Partnership  coordinated the project on behalf of the Emergency Food Network, which brings together different emergency and community food support projects across the district. Responding to network concerns about the lack of opportunity for ordinary people to share their experiences of financial hardship, the partnership successfully applied for a ‘participatory processes grant’ from national partners Sustainable Food Places which made the Feeling the Pinch project possible.
Lewes District Food Partnership work to connect communities and organisations to build better food systems for everyone. They are committed to including seldom heard voices in their movement to make Good Food for All a reality in Lewes District.

Ruby says: 

This work grew as an idea from the Emergency Food Network of foodbanks, community spaces and other projects that linked people with affordable or free food.

“People felt we were doing this work, but people were not being heard or asked their opinions. And it came from people saying they would like to see people’s stories amplified. We were fed up hearing people talk ‘on behalf’ of other people, especially politicians, and we were fed up hearing the same narratives around budgeting. 

“Recruitment was a lot of me going out to talk to people and projects. I went to social groups and coffee mornings aimed at reducing isolation and various key community food projects. I work directly with a Lewes food bank so could talk to people directly here as well. 

“The first session was getting to know each other and who lives in our household and what our situations were. 

“We had four sessions together then a final truth hearing. The four sessions looked at who we are, what matters to us, what needs to change and what we would like to say to politicians locally. For the final session, 25 community participants came along, with councillors, community groups, housing officers and more. That was a good day.”

Next steps

Through the success of the Feeling the Pinch project, organisers have secured funding to expand the project as part of a collaboration that brings together local and national food justice and support charities, networks and local authorities. The new ‘Pinch Points’ project, due to start in May, will host multiple, place-based work-shops that feed into a district-wide panel of experts by experience.

The Feeling the Pinch project is already having an impact in Lewes District. Responding to the project, Lewes District Council have committed to increasing opportunities for meaningful participation, recognising the expertise of residents with lived experience and moving towards more transparent, compassionate interactions with residents. They are currently working on a cost-of-living action plan that places Feeling the Pinch recommendations at its core.

Different types of organisations are also recognising the value of including resident experiences and recommendations in their work. For example, organisers are working with developers Human Nature and the Food Foundation on a Health and Food Strategy for a new housing development in Lewes.

Organisers hope to widen this influence through creative communications, for example, displaying the exhibition materials in public places.

Church Action on Poverty’s role

Church Action on Poverty launched the Speaking Truth To Power programme in 2022, supporting people with first-hand experience of poverty to become more effective advocates for change. Participants share skills and ideas with one another, and identify issues and possible actions together.

There’s a national panel and also local groups in Liverpool and Southwark, and we’ve been keen to support the roll-out elsewhere. So, when LDFP expressed interest in doing a like-minded piece of work, we were delighted. A couple of members of Church Action on Poverty’s staff team have provided some practical guidance at points during the process.

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Church Action on Poverty's logo, beside a headshot of Stef Benstead

This is Church Action on Poverty's response to the 2023 Autumn Statement, from campaigner, researcher and writer Stef Benstead.

Stef is a trustee for Church Action on Poverty, author of Second Class Citizens: The Treatment of Disabled People in Austerity Britain, and a member of Manchester Poverty Truth Commission.

Church Action on Poverty's logo, beside a headshot of Stef Benstead

The Government has yet again come up with policy ideas that don’t match the reality of benefit recipients’ lives. Some of what they say sounds good until you realise what the actual issues are. Some of it only sounds good if you think that the right way to help people is to punish them into doing what you want.

A lot of it is very frustrating to anyone who has read the Government’s own research, because their policies tend to be the opposite of what their research says.

Aerial view of Houses of Parliament

Government needs to learn the realities of Universal Credit

The Government is saying it will kick people off all support, if they are on an open-ended sanction for six months and don’t get any money for housing or other issues in their Universal Credit. In their head, I imagine they are thinking of young adults living with their parents, and these young adults are just not bothering to look for work. 

Actually a lot of these young people may already not be claiming benefits at all! Instead the people the Government are talking about could be people who are living in temporary accommodation, B&Bs, hostels, refuges, or sheltered or supported accommodation. They might be sick or disabled, but not have this recognised by Universal Credit because they’re not deemed ill or disabled enough. They might have shared caring duties, but again not have it recognised by Universal Credit because the other carer is claiming those duties on their benefits.

Precisely because their extra challenges aren’t recognised by Universal Credit, these people can be some of our most vulnerable. And now the Government is saying it wants to make these people’s lives even harder by kicking them off benefits completely, just because the challenges of their lives make it difficult for them to do anything and everything a work coach might decide to impose on them.

A screenshot of the Universal Credit website

Government has responsibilities

The Government wants to force people to take unpaid work placements at private companies. The Government tried this ten years ago, and it went down really badly. The public objected to the idea that private companies should profit off forced labour in this way, and that jobseekers should be forced to take low-skill, entry-level activity instead of doing meaningful activity like volunteering. It is crazy that the Government is trying to reintroduce such a bad idea.

The whole ethos of Government ought to be about building an economy with enough jobs and where jobs are decent, and where we look after people rather than making people’s lives as poor and miserable as possible in the belief that this will somehow create enough jobs, and the right sorts of jobs, in the right places. Government likes to talk about rights and responsibilities – let’s talk about the Government’s responsibility to make sure there is a decent standard of living for everyone.

Government should value volunteering

For people seeking work, I’d love to see a Government that valued and prioritised volunteering. One option would be for the Government to treat every hour of volunteering as two hours’ of jobsearch when it comes to applying conditions to jobseekers. This would recognise that people want to work and want to make a meaningful contribution to their community and society. It would recognise that actually, doing 35 hours of jobsearch every week for weeks on end is pretty meaningless and de-skilling, and helps no-one. 

Valuing volunteering would benefit communities, by having useful activity carried out that otherwise doesn’t get done. It would benefit jobseekers, by giving them meaning and purpose in their life, and allowing them to practice skills that could actually lead to a decent job. The Government should be actively pursuing ways to enable jobseekers to engage in voluntary activity like that. It should be the key stream of the job-related support that they offer. 

For people who are too sick or disabled to be able to support themselves through paid work, it is more than time that the Government recognised that we actually exist. It is so frustrating to see the Government complain that we aren’t forced to look for work, when all of the Government’s own research shows that people who are less sick still really struggle to get and maintain paid work. 

A volunteer taking potatoes from a sack in a community pantry

We need the freedom to manage our lives

The Government complains that we’ve been abandoned, when actually the freedom to manage our lives in accordance with our health needs – and not in accordance with the demands of a paid job – is so important.

The Government should be declaring that it wants to enable sick and disabled people to live a fulfilled life, and that it will support us in whatever activity we can engage in – voluntary work; community or religious participation; taking part in family life – and that it will ensure we can access timely, quality healthcare. This does not mean more CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy).

A challenge to Christians and churches

Stef Benstead with a copy her book, Second Class Citizens, which looks at the way the UK has breached disabled people's human rights

To Christians, I want to say that God is very clear that He expects leaders to look out for the people they lead. Ezekiel 34 is a whole chapter condemning selfish shepherds and fat sheep for abusing the weak, sick, and injured and for acting harshly and brutally. God frequently pulls leaders up for not acting to ensure justice and the wellbeing of the poor. Government should be looking out for people in society who are struggling and making sure people in power are not exploiting others.

The society that God set up for his people was one that made sure people always had access to a home and a means to live. God used laws around debt, interest, employment, and Jubilee to ensure that everyone was provided for.

The principle is a society making sure everyone has a stable home to live in and a means of income, through work or other financial support. These are principles that Christians should be calling for and pressing Government to provide. Governments have failed to do this for decades and this is a matter of justice. Churches should be challenging Governments when they fail.

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The activists Speaking Truth to Power in York

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An evening photo of the House of Commons, from across the Thames

Briefing: New Government data further undermines its cuts to UK’s vital lifelines

The Bishop of Durham listens to a participant seated beside him.

Church leaders from 6 denominations and people with experience of poverty in North East England met, to work together to tackle poverty in the region.

Church Action on Poverty North East, Thrive Teesside and the Bishop of Durham, Paul Butler, co-hosted a roundtable event for 35 people at All Saints Church, Newton Hall, Durham, on October 11th.

A large group of people seated around a table in a church hall

Led by voices of experience

The agenda had been led by people with experience of poverty, and speakers included people with six particular perspectives of poverty.

6 perspectives of poverty in North East England

  • Davey, from Gateshead, had prepared an account about sanctions, which was read on his behalf. It told how an unnecessary sanction had led to him losing his housing benefit, and therefore being evicted while still grieving for a family tragedy.
  • Sue from Gateshead told of the particular challenges facing carers, and the huge backlog of people waiting to be assessed for support. She also talked of sanctioning, saying: “People get sanctioned for any reason, sometimes if people could not get online to see a message from the DWP.”
  • Lesley from Jarrow relayed stories from a debt support programme, which is helping local people address more than £360,000 of debt collectively.
  • Richard from Upper Teesdale talked about the invisible poverty in rural areas, exacerbated by people being pushed to use online services, when rural internet is often inadequate.
  • Graham and Sharon from Easington Colliery told of the challenges in ex-mining areas, and the lack of support services. Graham said: “A lot of people feel abandoned.”
  • Julie from Thriving Women in Stockton on Tees read from a collaborative poem, which asked: “Whose narrative is being heard?”

Church leaders to work together

Others talked about the loss of face-to-face support, and of the remaining support being stretched to its limit, and David Burns from the Salvation Army talked about the need to uphold people’s dignity, and to accompany them rather than giving hand-outs.

Attendees were encouraged to support community events during the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, and a follow-up meeting has been arranged, to begin agreeing practical next steps.

Tracey Herrington, Kim Plumpton and Claire Lowery at the event

Church can hold politicians to account

The meeting was chaired by Bishop Paul, and church attendees included representatives from the Catholic Church, Church of England, Methodist Church, Salvation Army, the Society of Friends, and the United Reformed Church.

Bishop Paul said he would relay the discussions to northern church leaders at a meeting next month, and also to people involved in the national Poverty Strategy Commission.

He said North East Churches Acting Together would also continue to invest in finding collective solutions. He said he and the Bishop of Jarrow would put a church representative forward for Hartlepool Poverty Truth Commission.

He said local and national government, and businesses, must work together to improve conditions for the lowest 15-20 per cent economically, and echoed the Let’s End Poverty campaign in saying all parties must be pushed to say what they will do to tackle poverty.

Picture gallery

Comments from attendees

The Bishop of Durham, Paul Butler

Bishop Paul said afterwards: “As always it was very good to hear the reality of poverty from those living with it.

“To be able to have a significant number of church leaders listening in to the stories, and hearing from others working alongside those facing the challenges of the social security system, the inadequacies of provision for those with significant mental health issues, and the lack of support for carers, raises many questions that we need to face as a society. 

“The journey to seek to really end endemic poverty is not a simple or easy one but it is one to which all of us gathered together are committed.”

The Rt Revd Stephen Wright, Bishop for the Catholic Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle, said: “I’m very grateful for the invitation for the meeting of Challenging Poverty Together in the North East. Our Catholic Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle is committed to working alongside our Christian sisters and brothers, people of all faiths and none in accompanying those who face needs and struggle in life.

“Our Lord always invites us to see our society and our political decisions through the eyes of the poor. As Christians, we are called to be advocates for their needs and to support them as best we can. I was very inspired to hear of all the ministry taking place across the North East and I am so grateful for all the volunteers who work across the region to support our brothers and sisters.”

Rev Richard Andrew

The Revd Richard Andrew, Chair of the Darlington Methodist District said: “It was a powerful and challenging experience to share with others as we listened to those living in poverty. I was particularly moved by these words, ‘The world does not see my face.’

“If we really believe that we see the face of Jesus in the face of the poor then as North East churches we need to stand up and be counted in solidarity with them.”

Bernadette Askins

Bernadette Askins, from Church Action on Poverty North East, said: Listening to the voices of people from our North East communities who live daily with poverty was a very powerful experience. I feel very hopeful that by working together we can make a real difference.”

Coy Eastwood at the event

Corrina Eastwood, Community Organiser for Thrive Teesside, said: “The commitment and the desire to tackle poverty and inequality was evident from all who attended. By uniting and sharing our insight and knowledge we will continue to work together to create change. The collective poem from thriving women was a powerful expression of voices unbroken, along with others who shared their lived realities – it gave a face and feelings behind the statistics.”

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This article is by the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, for Challenge Poverty Week.

What do you want for and from your society?

That might sound like a very grand or heavy question for a blog post like this, but it’s one we should all pause to ponder from time to time. 

What do we really want our society and community to look like? 

What might we collectively want to change or redesign? 

Whose voices are being ignored, for instance?  

Nothing in our society is fixed or inevitable. We should all believe change is possible, albeit sometimes difficult. And we should amplify the voices of people who are being denied justice and a fair say. 

How on earth are people on low incomes coping?

I was struck recently by some notable research from the Living Wage Foundation, looking at the impact of the cost of living emergency on low-paid workers. In a poll of 2,000 people, researchers found that hardship remains far higher than before the current economic crisis.  I often think, on checking out in the supermarket and seeing the bill for modest amounts of food, how on earth people on low incomes are coping currently.  

  • half of low-paid workers are worse off than a year ago
  • 39% had regularly skipped meals for financial reasons
  • the same proportion had fallen behind with bills
  • a third had been unable to afford to heat their homes.
  • over a quarter had fallen behind on rent or mortgage payments
  • over a fifth had turned to payday loans just to cover essential costs.  

These numbers are galling. 

There are 3.5 million low-paid workers in the UK, and beneath the headline statistics are millions of human stories: men, women, children, parents, grandparents, friends and neighbours – our fellow citizens, whose lives have been hindered and made harder, and by circumstances entirely beyond their control. 

A Pantry member in a pink top takes her groceries to the counter.
Rising living costs have particularly affected low-income households

We all want dignity - for ourselves and our neighbours

There are severe financial, health and emotional consequences across our community when people’s incomes are squeezed like this, but there is also a huge threat to our shared human dignity.  

For all our differences across society, there is one common aspiration – we all want to live with dignity, and to be able to participate fully and freely in our communities. 

And we all want that dignity, not just for ourselves but for each other. It is not so long ago that millions of us joined the collective mutual aid effort during the pandemic, because we are intrinsically unhappy seeing our neighbours going without.

In our communities, when one of us suffers, we all do. Polling earlier this year showed that almost nine in 10 UK adults says more should be done to tackle poverty in this country. There’s an overwhelming appetite for change, and it’s time for the country’s politicians to heed that call. 

The dignity of people on low incomes is consistently threatened. Sometimes by powerful employers who don’t pay people enough to live on. Sometimes by politicians who choose to keep benefits debilitatingly low. Sometimes by unequally distributed care that isn’t sufficient for everyone. And sometimes by entrenched power structures that exclude people who know first-hand what life in deep hardship is like. 

This isn’t right, but it can change. This week is Challenge Poverty Week in England and Wales, a week in which hundreds of people speak up about solutions that are working well at local level, and which could be emulated more widely.

You might hear about Poverty Truth Commissions, which bring people together at town or city level, merging people’s myriad of expertise and insights – crucially, paying as much heed to the voices of residents as professionals. There have been successful ones already in Leeds, and a York one is ongoing, bringing together the people who make key decisions and the people who are most impacted by them. 

Let's End Poverty

Also this week, many churches and community groups have been holding local discussions around the new Let’s End Poverty campaign

It is possible to change the direction of poverty trends. This is one of the wealthiest countries in the world, and we know we have the resources and the expertise required. We also know that there is great public desire. But do we have the political will?  

Each day I pray that we may all be given our daily bread. This must mean each of us getting what is sufficient. Not just some of us. And so many, getting an awful lot more. 

Let’s speak up, not just this week but frequently, for what we want our society to look like. Let’s celebrate the work of the unsung people and organisations that make our communities tick, but let’s also call on our politicians to be ambitious for our lowest-income neighbours, and to deliver policies and plans that ensure the dignity of everyone.  

Let’s speak up for a future where everyone has enough to live on. Where everyone has enough to eat. Where everyone is able to wake up each day unhindered by income in the pursuit of their ambitions, and equipped to participate fully in our society.

That’s what I want from society, and this Challenge Poverty Week, let’s listen to people with first-hand experience of poverty, whose ideas and insights are essential to building that better future more quickly. 

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An evening photo of the House of Commons, from across the Thames

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What drives activists and activism? For Ashleigh, it is a combination of love, hope, and a passion for equality and justice.

Ashleigh has experienced powerlessness, homelessness, the criminal justice system and poverty. But her experiences have also shown her that change is possible, and achievable.

She now strives to make that happen, through the Moms On A Mission group she co-runs, and through work with others, in Yorkshire and London.

Here, Ashleigh tells her story of speaking truth to power.

Ashleigh, right, with fellow Moms On A Mission campaigners

Ashleigh: "I did not realise I had power... but that changed"

I would definitely like to see more equality. That is what pushed me on in the beginning, and wanting to see people being able to reclaim their power and implement change. 

“I did not realise I had power within me to make a difference in a big society, but that changed. The Young Women’s Trust played a big part in that. I was born in and lived in London and went past Westminster many times but never felt valued or welcome to be in those spaces.

“Then I went to an All Party Parliamentary Group meeting in about 2017, and to participate in that conversation was powerful. The Young Women’s Trust brought me power, and then I started Moms On A Mission, because the YWT works with people up to age 30, and I wanted to be able to help more people. 

“My work with Moms On A Mission is to empower communities and build resilience and confidence so people can overcome the challenges of poverty, breaking the generational curse of poverty.

Ashleigh at the 2023 Dignity For All conference

Ashleigh: "If we aspired to do everything with love, the world would not operate as it does now"

“I am a born again Christian. I grew up in a Christian background but started to stray from the church, and started being involved in some crime and alcohol, being a rebellious teenager, but in situations I went through I saw God’s hand. Every trial or tribulation I came through, such as going to prison, homelessness and being sectioned under the mental health act, made me feel stronger and ignited a flame. 

 “For me, love is at the centre of everything. If we aspired to do everything with love, the world would not operate as it does now. 

Ashleigh: short-term needs and long-term hope

“It’s hard to balance a long term vision with what needs to happen now. You can get distracted from the main goal but I feel everything we do is directed to the long vision. I was relocated by my council from London to Halifax because there are not enough houses in London – that was not part of my plan but we now have work to do in Halifax and things have turned around.

“I did not see how I could keep running the Moms work down in Barking & Dagenham, with me in Halifax. I felt in the wilderness and wondered what my purpose was, but God was with me and he has sent people who need help to be. There were not many groups here focusing on BAME communities and the issues we faced, but now we are doing that. 

Ashleigh was part of the 2022 roundtable on tackling poverty in Yorkshire

Ashleigh: speaking up in Parliament

“I have a lot of hope for Speaking Truth To Power. I definitely hope we will have more opportunities for young people to meet politicians, and I would like us to help have the poverty rate decline and have some policy change. I want to see a significant reduction in poverty in the UK.

“So many issues we see now are impacting on mental health. The cost of living, the cost of food – people wondering how they can cope on a daily basis? Where we live in Calderdale has a high suicide rate and people are struggling.

“One of the big issues I care about is the need for more support for families with children with special educational needs or disabilities (SENDs). Moms On A Mission is a big advocate on this, because it relates to issues we have experienced ourselves.

“We need more support and the pandemic has made it worse, impacting on more children and creating a backlog for support. Parents want to go to work, but when your child has additional needs or is getting excluded and there isn’t the support, then it’s hard. People get labelled as “challenging children” but there just isn’t the proper support. 

“So in October, Moms On A Mission and other groups went to Parliament and spoke to MPs, and tell them what support is needed. We want to raise awareness that there have been so many families with SENDs but not diagnosed – you get adults who end up in prison because conditions were not diagnosed when they were young and they were never supported and end up in difficulties. 

“We see also, especially in our BAME communities, that there is sometimes a reluctance and a sense that it’s forbidden to say a child has extra needs. So we want to bring up how the authorities can approach families before situations get out of hand.

“NHS services need improving and there seems to be a reluctance from GPs to put referrals through. There was already a big waiting list, and covid made it worse. The country needs to be funding the support that is needed for families.

“Another thing we are doing is working in our community in Halifax, to promote everything we are doing and to encourage more people to get involved and become community organisers. We are looking at power and who has it, and at collective power, and to talk about what we’re doing to speak truth to power, and we held a community brunch in Challenge Poverty Week.”

Ashleigh: I am very hopeful

“I’m very hopeful, with the generation we have today.

“When I was growing up, I did not see as many people speaking up as are speaking up now. I feel a lot of people really do want to make a difference now, but a lot of people still don’t know how to get started. So having groups like the Speaking Truth To Power panel is really important. I feel we have a really good group here with different perspectives and experiences, and I’m hearing a lot from different individuals. I think we will become known for making a change, and people should be the change you want to see.”

Speaking Truth to Power

Artist Don: How Leith Pantry has helped ease my depression

Are we set for a landmark legal change on inequality?

SPARK newsletter winter 2023-24

Let’s say what we truly want society to look like – Let’s End Poverty

Charity and church leaders call for urgent action on rising poverty in the UK and around the world

New Year’s Honour for inspiring campaigner Penny

Meet our five new trustees

Feeding Britain & YLP: Raising dignity, hope & choice with households

Parkas, walking boots, and action for change: Sheffield’s urban poverty pilgrimage

Dreamers Who Do: North East event for Church Action on Poverty Sunday 2024

Autumn Statement: Stef & Church Action on Poverty’s response

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Ashleigh: “I think we will become known for making a change”

North East churches & community gather to tackle poverty together

The activists Speaking Truth to Power in York

We’re listening!

An evening photo of the House of Commons, from across the Thames

Briefing: New Government data further undermines its cuts to UK’s vital lifelines

A group of 9 people outside a brick building, Nottingham's first Your Local Pantry. Most are wearing purple aprons; one is holding a basket of food.

We're helping local partners to reclaim dignity, choice and hope in Nottingham.

The first Your Local Pantry in Nottingham has opened to members.

Meadows Pantry opened in Bridgeway Hall Methodist Mission in The Meadows on September 28th.

There are just over 100 venues in the Your Local Pantry network, but this is first in Nottingham, or Nottinghamshire.

9 people outside a brick building, Nottingham's first Your Local Pantry. Most are in purple aprons; one is holding a basket of food.

The Pantry had held a soft launch earlier in September, ahead of the official opening.

Mark Knowles, Pantry coordinator, said they had heard about the success of Pantries elsewhere, and decided it would be a positive addition to the community.

He said: “We have run a busy food bank in Bridgeway Hall for ten years, and see the Pantry as an opportunity for people in The Meadows to access quality food at a good price on an ongoing, regular basis. It has been well-received and local people are really pleased.”

There has been a steady flow of members already. 

Pantry shelves, including rice, tins, pasta, cordials, tuna and more

One of the shoppers at the launch day was Lidiia, who has been living in The Meadows since leaving Ukraine a year ago. 

She said: “It’s a really good idea and I really like the organisation with the hearts and diamonds system, and the very good variety. I really like it. The Nottingham people have been very kind and welcoming.”

She was particularly pleased with the wide variety of food, which included a couple of ingredients she was accustomed to in Ukraine as well. 

A woman in a black coat in front of a Meadows Pantry banner

Shabir Jivraj, Midlands development coordinator for Your Local Pantry, said: “Pantries are wonderful places that bring people together around food, soften the impact of high living costs, and really strengthen the power and potential of neighbourhoods. They improve local food systems, while upholding everyone’s dignity, choice and hope.

“They are a reminder of the power and potential within communities – we can all do and be so much more when we pull together.

“We’re delighted to welcome Meadows Pantry to the network, and look forward to meeting and getting to know the members and volunteers.”

A group shot of 9 people inside Nottingham's first Your Local Pantry. Most are in purple aprons; one is holding a basket of food.

Pantries help to strengthen community, improve people’s physical and mental health, and improve people’s financial situation by reducing grocery bills.

Members can access food at a small fraction of its usual supermarket price, improving household food security, and also enjoy wide-ranging additional outcomes. Members at Meadows Pantry pay £5 a week, for which they are able to choose ten items. Members save an average of £21 a week on groceries.

Earlier this summer, the Your Local Pantry network published its So Much More report. Researchers found that Pantry members reported improved physical and mental health, new friendships, strengthened community and reduced isolation, and Pantries are consistently serving as stepping stones to additional support. Nationally, Pantry members saved £4.75 million on shopping last year.

A shopping basket of groceries

The team at Meadows Pantry hope to reach 50 members within the next few months. It is open from 10am to noon on Thursdays.

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SPARK newsletter winter 2023-24

Let’s say what we truly want society to look like – Let’s End Poverty

Charity and church leaders call for urgent action on rising poverty in the UK and around the world

New Year’s Honour for inspiring campaigner Penny

Meet our five new trustees

Feeding Britain & YLP: Raising dignity, hope & choice with households

Parkas, walking boots, and action for change: Sheffield’s urban poverty pilgrimage

Dreamers Who Do: North East event for Church Action on Poverty Sunday 2024

Autumn Statement: Stef & Church Action on Poverty’s response

Act On Poverty – a Lent programme about tackling UK and global poverty

The activists Speaking Truth to Power in York

We’re listening!

An evening photo of the House of Commons, from across the Thames

Briefing: New Government data further undermines its cuts to UK’s vital lifelines

Two Pantry members with their shopping at Peabody Pantry in Chingford

Pantry members, volunteers and supporters have always cherished Pantries’ focus on dignity - so we were pleased recently to see its importance being recognised by an influential group of MPs.

The Environment Food and Rural Affairs Committee has published this report into Food Security.

As part of their research, the MPs visited several food organisations and projects in Liverpool, including Blue Base Pantry.

A sense of dignity and choice

The report had this to say:

“We applaud the work being done by charities in Liverpool and around the country to support those in need of food aid. In particular, the Pantry model of food aid provided a sense of dignity to users, as well as choice, and is something we would encourage other food aid organisations to consider where possible.”

A volunteer in a Pantry hoody carries a crate of peaches

The report also acknowledged the additional support that Pantries provide, noting that other advice and support organisations are often also present at the Pantry.

The committee received and heard evidence from a wide range of organisations, including large national charities and public sector bodies.

Another excerpt from the report says: 

“The Trussell Trust said that providing emergency food parcels to people facing an income shortfall was “not a sustainable solution”, adding that “nothing can replace the dignity of households having enough income to buy the food they need for their family”.

“The Local Government Association (LGA) was one of several organisations to call on the Government to take steps tackle rising food insecurity and expand access to access healthy and nutritious food. The LGA said income presented the ‘most significant barrier’ to an adequate diet, prompting it to propose a benefits system that reflected ‘true living costs’.”

Aerial view of Houses of Parliament

Dignity: cross-party praise

The committee consists of six Conservative MPs, four Labour MPs and one SNP MP.

The committee report said that it welcomed the “substantial support packages” from Government, but said: “The Government should examine whether the totality of support to lower-income households, including from central and local Government and charities, is sufficient to ensure household food security without the need to regularly use food aid organisations and publish its findings within six months of the publication of this Report.”

It also said the Government should undertake a detailed assessment of the costs and benefits of extending free school meals in England.

Much of this echoes what Pantry members tell us time and again, and what we said when we launched the Your Local Pantry So Much More report in July.

Government must step up to secure dignity for all

When communities come together around food, they can do and be wonderful things… but Pantry members and volunteers are also witnessing the acute harm being done by soaring living costs, coupled with inadequate national support systems.

Charity has never been the long term answer to food insecurity. We need so much more than that.

We need national commitment and we need Government to step up. Everyone should have access to good food – and that means all incomes need to keep pace with rising living costs.

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Church on the Margins reports

Church Action on Poverty North East annual report 2022-24

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An evening photo of the House of Commons, from across the Thames

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We hear how Speaking Truth To Power is progressing in Southwark

Change happens when people come together and demand it.

The exciting new Speaking Truth To Power programme is enabling that to happen. 

People who know first-hand what causes and sustains poverty in the UK are coming together. Speaking up. Taking action.

The programme consists of a national panel, and two localised groups: one in Liverpool and one in Peckham in south London.

A recent Voices For Southwark workshop

Meet the Southwark project

This blog focuses on the Southwark group, and we hope it will help you to find out three things:

  1. Who the group is.
  2. What motivated the group to get involved in Speaking Truth To Power
  3. How the work is going so far.

Helping us do that is Flora Schweighofer, community engagement officer at Pecan, the host organisation in Southwark, and Esther, a member of their Voices for Southwark group.

The Pecan office: a corner high street building decorated blue, with a Pecan sign above the door.

"Hi Flora, can you start by telling us a bit about Pecan? What is the organisation and what do you do?"

Flora: “As a community charity, Pecan offers practical and emotional support to people in Peckham and across Southwark in South East London.

“In addition to direct support with food at Southwark Foodbank and Peckham Pantry, our community food projects aim to see a Southwark where everyone has enough money to afford the essentials and emergency food is no longer needed.

The Speaking Truth To Power logo

"And you've started working on the Speaking Truth To Power project. Can you tell us what that involves and why it appealed to Pecan?"

Flora: “The Speaking Truth to Power project compliments our work and vision at Pecan.

“Participation and community organising are already a big part of our work at Pecan, and our local organising project at Southwark Foodbank is part of the Trussell Trust’s Organising and Local Mobilisation programme.

“With this project, we aim to address structural local issues and build campaigns that are led by members of our community who have used our foodbank, pantry or have lived experience of financial hardship.”

"How is it going so far?"

Flora: “It’s going well and we’ve really grown together as a group over the last months.

“We’ve been holding monthly group discussion meetings on local issues in Southwark since September 2022. The aim was to come together to share our experiences with and thoughts on some of the issues that contribute to financial hardship locally.

“From our brainstorming and open discussion activities, we have narrowed down our list and decided on one issue to focus on for now.

“Our plans for the next months ahead are to continue our regular meetings and further develop our campaign.

“We want to be part of more conversations with local government representatives and other decision-makers to share our plans and asks for a Southwark where everyone can afford the essentials.”

We aim to address structural local issues and build campaigns that are led by members of our community

———— Flora Schweighofer

“Esther, you’ve been part of Pecan’s community organising work since the discussion meetings started last year. What are some of the issues that local people are raising and want to address?”

Esther: “We talked about so many changes that we want to see as a group: cleanliness of our borough, transport that’s affordable to all, reducing barriers to getting into employment.

“For now, we have decided to focus on easily accessible information and holistic support combining a range of services.”

"Lastly, Esther, why do you think all this matters - why is it important that people do speak truth to power?"

Esther: “For the services rendered to be effective and productive, the users’ voices have to be heard. Otherwise, it can be a bit pointless.

“When you’re not listening to the people that you serve, it won’t really have an impact on their lives.

“It’s the voices of the people that are meant to be heard, but from my own experience, it doesn’t happen most of the time. But we can make a change, and that’s why we’re here.”

A group of 9 people in an office room, facing the camera,. The middle person is holding a vertical "Church Action on Poverty" banner.
Church Action on Poverty staff visited Pecan in 2022, for a Pilgrimage On The Margins event.

Read more from Speaking Truth To Power participants and activists below:

Artist Don: How Leith Pantry has helped ease my depression

Are we set for a landmark legal change on inequality?

SPARK newsletter winter 2023-24

Let’s say what we truly want society to look like – Let’s End Poverty

Charity and church leaders call for urgent action on rising poverty in the UK and around the world

New Year’s Honour for inspiring campaigner Penny

Meet our five new trustees

Feeding Britain & YLP: Raising dignity, hope & choice with households

Parkas, walking boots, and action for change: Sheffield’s urban poverty pilgrimage

Dreamers Who Do: North East event for Church Action on Poverty Sunday 2024

Autumn Statement: Stef & Church Action on Poverty’s response

Act On Poverty – a Lent programme about tackling UK and global poverty

How 11 people spoke truth to power in Sussex

Obituary: Michael Campbell-Johnston SJ

Annual review 2022-23

Ashleigh: “I think we will become known for making a change”

North East churches & community gather to tackle poverty together

The activists Speaking Truth to Power in York

We’re listening!

An evening photo of the House of Commons, from across the Thames

Briefing: New Government data further undermines its cuts to UK’s vital lifelines