What have we been up to?

Southside is working closely with other local organisations so that those who are most vulnerable could access the food, essentials and support that they need. Working with FareShare SW and supported by Bath Rag, we set up a new Emergency Pantry in Twerton to provide families with a ‘weekly shop’. With support from Wessex Water and Bath City Farm, hundreds of meals are being distributed by our team of staff and volunteers, which is making such a difference to local families.

Thanks to Quartet Community Foundation and the Parry Family Charitable Foundation, Southside’s Emergency Fund ensures that vulnerable families can access the essentials they need such as food, care supplies and baby clothes/equipment.

Some families are really struggling with home schooling and lack the space and resources to enable each child to learn online or undertake the recommended range of learning and creative activities. We have developed Activity Packs for children of vulnerable families locked down in their homes to help with home learning, and the Parry Family Charitable Foundation also funded stationery, arts and crafts resources and books for the packs.

In the last few weeks, it’s clear that families are increasingly feeling the strain and pressure of lockdown – mental health is dipping, family relationships are breaking down, increase in domestic violence. Through our close contact with families, either on the doorstep when we’re delivering meals and essentials or through contact with their Family Support Workers, we’re learning a lot about how people are coping and how we can support them

Our families’ stories:

A mum who has three children with her youngest daughter needing kidney dialysis at home every day said, “the meals have been brilliant”. Her boys love the meals and get excited when they are delivered. The support with the daily meals were especially helpful during the week when her daughter was in hospital and mum stayed with her. Mum said she felt like pressure was taken off her as she knew the boys would be eating well while she was away.

Another mum said that because she is pregnant, the support with meals has meant that she hasn’t had to go shopping so often which makes her feel safer. She said that the meals have been ‘delicious’ so far and she loved the fact the children were eating meals and food which she would not normally cook for them. Her eight-year-old boy has started wanting to help with cooking and the family made Beef Stroganoff together, which they would never have tackled normally.

Some of the first Activity Packs were delivered with a weekly supply from Southside’s emergency pantry for a local family – a single mum with four children, one of whom has underlying health issues. Mum is fearful that the children could bring infection back home from school putting her son at risk. For each pantry delivery, the two younger children come to the door to see what is in the food bag and catch up with the Southside worker (at a safe distance).

Mum had to take her son to a hospital appointment in Bristol which caused her great anxiety in addition to trying to manage school work for all her children, which takes a lot of time because she struggles to understand the work herself. When the Southside worker arrived with the extra treat of the new activity bags, the children were delighted – they loved the ribbon that tied them together and proceeded to empty them out and compare what they had received. Mum texted Southside the next day to thank everyone because it brought a smile to their faces and also to let us know they’re using the new pencils etc to do their school work, which makes it better for everyone.