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2025 – The Year of Change

Written by Ian Boyle

In recent years, foodbanks across the country, and most definitely ours here in Lincoln, have experienced growing demand as families and individuals face economic challenges. 

But 2024 may have sparked something at Lincoln Foodbank, where something has been happening that has bucked the recent trend… 

In 2024, we saw a significant decrease in the number of guests using our service compared to the previous year, an outcome that speaks to a more holistic and transformative approach to addressing food poverty in the city of Lincoln.

We crunched the numbers, and 2024 produced 18% less signposting referrals to foodbank than 2023. A huge decrease, I’m sure you can agree – and we hope, can be attributed to the wrap-around approach to care we provide across all of our projects and services.

This strategy focuses on connection, empowerment, and holistic support for individuals and families. From working closely with our internal teams across all projects, we can ensure that there is no wrong door a guest of ours turns to. Every opportunity we can present them with will give them the chance to benefit in some way. 

This isn’t simply about hunger, it’s also about isolation, withdrawal, struggle, disconnection. We believe that our holistic approach is, in some way, responsible (and essential) for breaking the cycle of poverty and food insecurity.

With global economic uncertainty, war, changing government, amongst many other world events, we’ve managed to support people who present in crisis and reduce those numbers by fostering relationships. This can be understanding deeper challenges they face that have come from the aforementioned. Perhaps they are struggling with unemployment, or needing access to mental health services. Volunteers and staff take time to listen, offering not just food but also empathy and support. This approach helps build trust, empowering clients to take control of their situation, rather than relying solely on external aid.

Our RAFT dept (Restore & Food Team) not only includes Foodbank but ‘Restore’, where many courses are available to our guests to help maximise their time with us. This can include the new to 2024 ‘Slow Cooker Course’, or preparing individuals for employment with ‘Job Club’, for example. 

We can’t, haven’t, and won’t do this alone, however. In order to continue this trend, we rely on our volunteers who often support the operation of our causes. We partner with hundreds of referring and signposting organisations, with thousands of members of staff across local business, companies, charities, healthcare institutions, educational facilities, and many more, who share responsibility to signpost their vulnerable guests towards what we do. We really couldn’t do it without you.

This emphasises the power of connection amongst humans. Not only from us to our guests, but between our partners too. This sense of community and interconnectedness strengthens the impact of our work. It not only ensures that individuals are able to access food but also provides a more comprehensive support system to address all the challenges they may face, on a personalised, tailor-made level.

By offering personalized attention, the food bank can better address the specific circumstances that contribute to food insecurity, whether that’s helping someone find stable employment, assisting with childcare, or guiding them through the process of accessing mental health services. This holistic approach not only reduces dependency on the food bank but also helps to lift people out of poverty in a sustainable way.

The drop in the number of users at Lincoln Foodbank is not an indication that hunger has been eradicated, but it is a sign that our model and processes of holistic empowerment and connection is making a real difference. By focusing on the root causes of food insecurity, empowering individuals with education and resources, and fostering meaningful relationships, the food bank has helped to break the cycle of dependence that often accompanies food poverty.

So from us, to you all, we want to say ‘thank you’ for standing along side us in our mission and journey so far, and we look forward to a healthy, happy, successful 2025.

Click here to support any of our projects and help us to end poverty in Lincoln.