Give Help

Donate Food

PLEASE NOTE: We are able to receive donations of food directly to our warehouse but please call our office first to arrange a time to drop off donations. Please note the new address for donations: unit 26 NOT 19.
We may also be able to collect donations from you, again please call our office to arrange a pick-up. Office: 01634 757057 Office hours: Tues – Thurs 9.30am – 3.30pm & Fri 9.30am – 1.30pm

You can download a printable list to take when shopping here.

 

On behalf of all those that we are able to help because of your donations and support – thank you. All your terrific donations go directly towards helping those in Medway who are struggling financially at the moment. Sadly, many are struggling financially at this difficult time and the need for our help remains very high, whilst the ability of some to donate has reduced.  This has meant that the stock levels of many items that we supply to those in crisis remains under severe strain. There are many items where our stock levels are currently very low. In order for us to be able to continue to offer the same level of support to those facing a time of financial crisis, we sadly continue to need your help. Please only donate if you are financially in a position to do so.

The items that we currently urgently need donating are on the stock shortage or ‘shopping list’ here.

You will notice that it is a long list. If you are a group, church, school or business that would like to collect and donate items for us, you may wish to consider focussing on just a few items or even one item from the list. This will help your group or team members remember the items required, and will help us to significantly improve the stock levels of those items. If you would like us to suggest particular items for your group to focus on, then please contact our office.

We aim to provide a broad spread of basic provisions and some treats and extras where we can. Medway Foodbank only works with non-perishable food items (tinned and dried goods), which do not easily spoil or decay, i.e. not fresh, chilled or “use by” dated items. Long ‘best before dates’ (e.g. 2 months or more) are essential in order to avoid waste. We also take non-food items such as toiletries and cleaning products, as these are also needed by the clients who come to us. All items should be unopened, in date (i.e. within the “best before date” or BBD) and in good condition.

Items on our shopping list can be purchased and donated locally at:

    • the two large Tesco stores (Strood and Gillingham)
    • the two large Asda stores (Chatham and Gillingham Pier)
    • Co-op Walderslade
    • Morrison’s Strood

If you would value a reminder of the items that we currently need as you walk into most of these local stores, you may like to consider using the free BanktheFood app. It’s a simple concept – download the app from your app store and follow the instructions to get started and ‘follow’ Medway Foodbank. The app will send you a helpful ‘ping’ with a reminder of our needs when you are shopping in your local supermarket. Head to their website and follow the instructions to download the app and to find out more at www.bankthefood.org.

If you want to use supermarket ‘home delivery’ to purchase and deliver direct to our warehouse, then please do contact our office first so that you know the best delivery days/times for us before you book a slot with the supermarket

We are signed up with the foodbank donation website called Bankuet to allow a simple, safe and low waste digital way of donating items. You are able to donate to Bankuet as a one-off or regularly. We can then use those funds to purchase food items that we need the most. Bankuet then arrange delivery to us at a convenient time.

If you wish to deliver items directly to our warehouse or need items to be collected, please call or email our office first on 01634 757057 or [email protected] to arrange a slot. If you receive the answerphone when you call, please do leave a message and we will call you back as soon as possible. Please do not just turn up as we want to keep everyone safe and we do not want you to have a wasted journey. (Office hours: Tues – Thurs 9.30am – 3.30pm & Fri 9.30am – 1.30pm).

If you are unable to help us by donating items, but want to donate financially, we would be very grateful as we are facing huge increases in running costs and we currently need to buy stock to meet the demand. Details for donating financially can be found here.

You are also able to provide valuable support to Medway Foodbank by letting others know about our needs, volunteering, arranging a local or group collection, or praying for the work we do and those that we help. If you would like to know more about these areas of support, please do contact our office.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND SUPPORT – we are helping hundreds of people in need each week and we continue to need your invaluable support. We cannot do this without you.

Kind regards,

Medway Foodbank

 

Please also see the table below for our supermarket food collection points.

Items can be placed in in the foodbank collection points in the 2 large Tesco and 2 large Asda stores in Medway, as well as at Morrisons Strood and the Co-op at Walderslade.

Please note that for Tesco and Asda these points can only be used for items purchased in-store (unless you put the items in a separate sealed bag and clearly mark it as not purchased in store). The reason they are different is that these supermarkets also donate a financial top-up for items bought and donated by the public in their stores which we really appreciate.

 

 

 

Location of food donation point     Opening hours Comments

Asda Chatham Superstore

387 Maidstone Road,

Chatham, ME5 9SE

Mon opens 07.00

Tues, Wed, Thurs, Friday 24 hrs

Sat closes 22.00

Sun 10.00-16.00

for items purchased in-store

Asda Gillingham Pier Superstore

Pier Road,

Gillingham, ME7 1RZ

Mon -Sat 07.00 – 23.00

Sun 10.00 – 16.00

 

for items purchased in-store

Coop Walderslade

Walderslade Road,

Chatham, ME5 9LL

Mon – Sat 07.00 – 22.00

Sun 10.00 – 16.00

Morrisons Supermarket,

Knight Road,

Strood, ME2 2AA

Mon-Sat 10.00 – 16.00

Sun 10.00-1600

 

Tesco Gillingham Superstore,

Courteney Road,

Gillingham, ME8 0GX

Mon-Fri 24 hours

Saturday open until 22.00

Sun 10.00-16.00

for items purchased in-store

Tesco Strood Superstore,

Charles St,

Strood, ME2 2DE

Mon-Sat 06.00 – midnight

Sun 10.00-16.00

for items purchased in-store

Medway Foodbank

Warehouse

 

See introduction above

Thank you all for your much-needed ongoing support of Medway Foodbank. As life continues to be challenging, we are seeing continued increases in foodbank usage and we are always needing more stock. We are in need of many items so that we may continue to offer the same level of support to all that come to us in financial crisis. Please see above Medway Foodbank’s latest stock shortage or ‘shopping’ list. This focuses on items that we particularly need in stock right now in order to continue to help those in crisis across Medway. We aim to provide a broad spread of basic provisions and some treats and extras where we can.

Please do contact the office if you have any questions or need further information. Thank you for your ongoing help, support and prayers – Medway Foodbank would not operate without your kindness and generosity.

We always welcome donations and promise to use them to provide help to people in crisis. Occasionally we send food to other nearby foodbanks to support their work, particularly if they experience shortages. This ensures your donations go to help people wherever they are in the UK. Donated items that are not deemed suitable for distribution to clients may be used to raise funds or may be passed on to other charitable organisations in Medway. In addition, surplus stock may also be passed on to organisations supporting those in need in the Medway area. If you would like more information on this then please use the ‘contact us’ section to make your request, giving your full name, contact telephone number and postal address for our response. Thank You.

 

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