A vital Dumbarton-based charity offering emergency food to vulnerable people has been forced to slash services because of a severe cut in council funding. Town centre-based Food for Thought has been told it will receive just £25,750 from the local authority this year – an almost 50 per cent drop from its usual annual grant of £42,000.
Service Reductions
Now the charity has no choice but to close its doors one day a week and drastically reduce the number of clients it helps in order to stay afloat. From next week, the service will operate only on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. In addition, it will stop food bags to adults, focusing solely on families and pensioners, as well as axing outreach projects in Alexandria and Clydebank.
Operations Manager Speaks Out
This week, operations manager Charlene Gold spoke of her reluctance to cut back on crucial food provision but said the charity has no choice. “We’ve had no explanation from the council for this cut in funding,” she said. “They know we’re struggling as we’ve already had to appeal through the provost for £5000 last month as we’d had nothing since March. When the council produced their budget in April they said there would be no changes or cuts to food insecurity. Now they’ve done it. If we don’t cut back our services, we simply won’t have a charity anymore.”
“We have to prioritise. We cannot afford the same level of support so we need to focus on the most vulnerable, especially with the school holidays looming.”
Financial Strain
Food for Thought, established in 2017, currently distributes between 100 and 120 adult bags a week at a cost of between £8 and £10 per bag. “That’s £1200 a week and almost £5000 a month which is well beyond our budget,” continued Charlene. From next week, regular individual adult clients will be advised they are no longer eligible to receive help. They’ll be issued a leaflet detailing alternative services where they can seek assistance. The project’s free community soup will still be running at St Augustine’s Church hall every Wednesday.
Charlene added: “I’m not looking forward to having to tell people but it’s out of our hands. My biggest concern is that our individual clients will have nowhere else to go. I get that people will be upset and I’ll be encouraging them to take their grievance to the council.”
She explained that while Food for Thought is waiting on a response from other potential funders, including to cover the salaries of the three paid employees, the tranche of money from the council is what has ensured the charity’s ability to meet rising food insecurity over the years. Without it, she said, the future looks bleak.
Board Chair Disappointed
Sharon Rowatt, who chairs the charity’s board, said everything was being done to try to secure the project’s future, adding: “I am deeply disappointed by the council’s decision to cut our funding with virtually no notice. This reduction comes at a time when demand for our services remains high and many families are already struggling with the rising cost of living. The lack of warning has left us with very little time to plan or put alternative funding arrangements in place. Decisions of this magnitude have real consequences, not just for our organisation, but for the vulnerable people who rely on us for support every week.
“We recognise the financial pressures facing local authorities, but we believe that organisations providing essential frontline services deserve meaningful consultation and adequate notice before such significant changes are made. We will continue to do everything we can to support those in need, but this decision will undoubtedly make that task much more challenging. We urge the council to reconsider and work with us to find a sustainable solution that protects some of the most vulnerable members of our community.”
Council Response
A council spokesperson said: “The council values the support Food for Thought provides to local families and recognises the financial pressures the organisation is facing. In March 2023, a three-year funding package was agreed, providing annual support through to March 2026. At the council’s budget meeting earlier this year, a further £120,000 was allocated to support foodbanks across the area. This year’s funding of £25,750 to Food for Thought reflects a proportionate share of this wider funding.”
