Tesco to provide donation bags in Wakefield this Easter helping families over school holidays

The popular donation bags pre-packed with healthy long life food items will be available in every large Tesco store across the UK over the Easter break (April 7 to April 20) to make donating the most-needed items easier.

Claire De Silva, Head of Communities at Tesco, said:“With the lack of free school meal provision during the holidays we know that families find it difficult to make ends meet and give their kids nutritious meals.

“Our pre-packed donation bags will give a much needed top up to FareShare and Trussell and make a difference to the lives of thousands of children and their families.”

The Easter Holiday Helps initiative is part of Tesco’s year-round support for schoolchildren as part of Tesco’s Stronger Starts campaign.

Trussell’s food banks support families year-round – with nearly two-thirds of all their support last year provided to families with children.

FareShare is the UK’s largest food redistribution charity, providing good-to-eat surplus food to a wide range of charities and community groups across the UK – three quarters of which support families with children.

Emma Revie, CEO at Trussell, said: “Our network of food banks distributed more than 1.1 million food parcels for children last year, almost double the amount provided just five years ago and this illustrates the unacceptable levels of hardship that many people are currently facing.

"No-one should need to turn to a charity for something as essential as food, and as we work towards achieving the long-term change needed, Tesco’s support this Easter will make a real difference to families across the UK.”

Kris Gibbon-Walsh, Chief Executive at FareShare, said: “During the holidays, many families across the UK struggle without access to free school meals, turning to local charities for help. This puts many of the 8,000 charities FareShare supplies food to under increased pressure to meet demand.

"Any donations from Tesco customers this Easter will enable us to continue getting good food to charities supporting and bringing people together around food, helping to strengthen communities and change lives.”