Dad facing difficult summer as food donations plunge

Dad facing difficult summer as food donations plungeImage caption, Matthew said he does not know what he would do without the community larderByLeigh Boobyer and Ross Pollard, West of EnglandPublishedJust nowA single father using a community larder to feed his family says he is facing a difficult summer as food donations fall and voucher schemes end.Matthew uses the Millbrook Hub community larder in Castle Cary up to three times a week.The father-of-two said: "Without it, I don't know what I'd do. The cost of living definitely has had an impact. Half the time, I can't afford food for myself."Charity leaders have said donations to food banks and community larders have hit record lows and they face an uncertain future.Matthew said this summer was also going to be very difficult due to Somerset Council ending a scheme where families of children on free school meals automatically get supermarket vouchers over holidays. "I'm going to have to stretch my budget even more this month, with great difficulty," he added.Matthew, who cannot work at the moment because he is a full-time father for young children, said over the next six weeks he might have to call on friends to help him pay for food for his children.However, council chiefs said food vouchers are still available through the Crisis and Resilience Fund, which replaced the previous Household Support Fund in April.Due to food choice being limited at the larder, Matthew said he mainly used it for nappies, toilet roll, shampoo and some food for himself.He then uses all the money he gets to pay for his children's food.Recently, he has seen the number of donations at the larder fall and said everyone is "struggling" due to the cost of living crisis.Image caption, Mark Hutton said he has seen a "lack of donations and contributions in recent months"Mark Hutton, who helps run the Millbrook Hub community larder, said he had seen first-hand the drop in donations. &...