Luton Town Football Club

Today Mark Cullen and Paul Benson visited the Luton Town Foodbank to show their personal support for people living in food poverty in Luton. 

Research shows that nearly 10% of the population of Luton do not have the ability to feed themselves adequately, with as many as one in four children facing poverty. In response to this shocking statistic, Luton Foodbank was set up and officially launched in 2013, providing emergency food supplies for people in crisis in the Borough, the Club have pledged to support their work and from December 2014, many staff and players will be making a contribution from their salaries to help this important cause. 

We caught up with Salma Khan, Project Coordinator at Luton Foodbank, to understand the importance of the society in the community "There are many reasons why someone may find they need help from Luton Town Foodbank. People’s situations can change quickly, for instance, they may find themselves out of work through redundancy or their family situation may change due to a relationship split. Whatever the situation Luton Foodbank are here to support families with essential food packages when they need it most” she said.

“We rely solely on donations from the local community and Luton Town supports can help in a number of different ways. You can donate food at one of our drop off points, you can  donate directly. Food packages consist of essential foods to feed a family for three days. We need continued donations to sustain the service we provide to ensure that no one in the town goes hungry. We give out 70 – 160 parcels per week to families whose alternative would be to go without food. ”volunteeror you can

Hatters’ Chief Executive Gary Sweet explained: “Luton Town Football Club is one of the most widely recognised organisations in the Town, with big audiences at the ground and online each week, we understand that we have a responsibility within the local community, so if we can do something to help the vitally important work of Luton Foodbank, then of course we’ll do what we can."

The Club have encouraged all staff to make a donation from their wages each month, and the take-up has been excellent.

"We’re hoping that by taking this action, we might encourage supporters, and others in the community to support this worthwhile cause as well,” he added. 

Volunteer., or Donate Drop off,

A standard food package contains: