Kate Brewster, from One Can Trust, writes exclusively to Bucks Free Press readers:

As things open up, it’s lovely to see so many people out in our local area. It feels like things are looking up for many of us. But, sadly, not for all of us.

As the pandemic has brought into sharp focus, people in our community and across the country have found themselves thrown into very different situations.

At the One Can Trust food bank, although we’ve seen a slight reduction in demand recently, we are still providing around 90% more parcels than before the pandemic.

That’s well over 400 local people who need our support to put food on the table every week and around half of those are children. We all need to eat well to thrive - something footballer Marcus Rashford is keeping firmly in the spotlight, as he continues to highlight the unacceptable levels of food poverty in this country.

At the One Can Trust we ensure that everyone referred to us gets balanced food parcels, which include fresh fruit and vegetables.

As so many of clients gratefully tell us, our support means ‘one less thing to worry about’ alongside the various competing demands on their unworkable household budgets.

Anyone can be thrown into adversity. Our clients come to us for a range of reasons including domestic abuse, mental health issues and addiction. In the last year, we’ve helped many families who’ve seen their jobs snatched away by the pandemic. Not everyone has a support network and savings to catch them.

Thankfully here in Wycombe, and the surrounding area of South Bucks we serve, we have an incredibly kind community which makes the essential support we offer possible.

A community which gives so much time in terms of our volunteers, who are the heart of our operation, and which collectively donates most of the food we provide.

We look forward to a day where there isn’t a need for the One Can Trust, but with the uplift to Universal Credit and the furlough scheme due to end in a few months, that vision feels a long way off.

In the meantime, I’m thankful we’re here to help and I’m proud to be part of a community which truly cares. Thank you to every single person and organisation who supports us.