Elaine Paige OBE has joined Stephen Fry in supporting a campaign to boost food bank donations. They’ve recorded a poem entitled’ 32 Seconds’ that encourages people to download the BanktheFood app. The app connects donors to the most urgent needs of their nearest food bank.
One in seven people in the UK is experiencing hunger, and food banks are distributing record numbers of emergency parcels. The BanktheFood app makes it simple to support your local community during this crucial time. It takes just 32 seconds to download and instantly shows you what items your nearest food bank needs most.
Spoken-word artist Georgie Jones wrote the powerful 32 Seconds poem, which Stephen Fry read in the campaign launch video with the heartfelt appeal: “While it may take minutes to make a cup of tea or inflate a balloon, it takes just 32 seconds to download the BanktheFood app and help those struggling to afford food.”
Elaine Paige said: “The app is a fantastic idea – even if you’re only able to donate one thing, using the app to see what’s needed most makes it more impactful and could be helping put food on the table the very same day. Nobody should be going to bed hungry. I hope that by supporting this campaign and sharing the poem, more people will use BanktheFood to support local food banks.”
Stephen Fry explains: “No one should have to go without essentials, and I know many people would like to help those struggling but may not always know the best way how. I hope that by supporting this campaign, more people become aware of BanktheFood and their free app that helps do good and gets people in the community supporting each other.”
Earlier this year, Trussell revealed that its network of food banks handed out 3.1 million food parcels in the past year. Shockingly, 655,000 individuals used a food bank for the first time. Families with children received 65 per cent of the parcels, and the number of parcels going to pensioners significantly rose.
Daniel Owen, Co-founder of BanktheFood, said, “We’re so grateful that so many people are helping spread the news of the BanktheFood app. Rising living costs have hit everyone, and more people are finding it difficult to balance their finances. There has never been a more crucial time to ensure food banks are stocked with essential items. BanktheFood enables people to make targeted donations that meet specific needs. We hope the 32 Seconds campaign will inspire thousands of new donors to get involved and support their local community.”
To see 32 Seconds visit bankthefood.org and download the BanktheFood app at www.bankthefood.org/32seconds/
To amplify the message, inspire others to join the movement, and support their local communities, BanktheFood is inviting people across the UK to record their own reading of the poem and share it on social media with the hashtag #32Seconds.
