Fight to keep town from going hungry

STOCKING up . . . at Oldham Foodbank

EXTRA support will be given to the ever-increasing number of families in food poverty if new proposals are voted through.

Oldham Council will vote on whether they increase the support for the poor, in line with the aims of the End Hunger campaign.

Councillor Cath Ball, who will put forward the motion at full council tomorrow, said: "There are many people in Oldham who are quietly suffering from poverty, and many of those have jobs.

"Unfortunately some of those jobs are zero hours contracts so they don't know from one week to the next how much money they will have to live on.

Volunteers

"Oldham Council is doing a lot to help these people, some of which I will be highlighting tomorrow. We are also working with many volunteers around the borough who are helping with food banks and other causes.

"Many schools run breakfast clubs, and many community groups run brunch clubs during the school holidays."

A successful motion will see councillors pledge to continue their work within community groups and alongside volunteers who are supporting families affected by food poverty.

It would also see Oldham Council urge the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) to ensure that GPs and other frontline staff take food poverty into account when seeing residents who are not in good health. Councillor Ball will encourage elected members to vote in favour of writing to the borough's MPs and the prime minister about the cause, asking them to ensure families have access to good food on a regular basis.

She said in the motion outline: "We are also working hard at encouraging growing hubs around the borough to enable people to grow their own vegetables.

"One thing we don't have is a way for people to cook their own food, as they struggle to pay fuel bills.

"The overall aim is to build a town in which everyone has access to good food and no one goes to bed hungry."