Christmas 2024

This page outlines everything you need to know about Christmas at Cirencester Foodbank this year! Please read through the information below. If you can’t find the answer to your question, you can email us and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can!

Are you providing foodbank parcels over Christmas? 

Cirencester Foodbank is closed for deliveries and collections every Friday and at Weekends.

Additionally, we have some slightly different opening times during the Christmas period:

Our warehouse will be closed from 24th Dec to 2nd January. We are unable to accept donations to the warehouse or office during this time, so please can we ask you hold onto your donation or drop it at one of our alternative donations points found here – > Donate food & other essentials | Cirencester Foodbank

The Cirencester Foodbank office is open to 1pm on Christmas Eve. Our office, centres and deliveries are closed on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, but will be open on the 30th and 31st of December (on a delivery-only basis, and a reduced schedule). On these days we will be open from 10am-1pm to deliver emergency parcels to local households in need. Scroll down to see how you can get a food voucher during this period.

How do I get referred for a food parcel over the Christmas period?

To get a food parcel from Cirencester Foodbank, you first need to obtain a voucher from one of our referral partners. They will talk with you and provide support to help you with the challenges you are facing that has meant you need emergency support and provide a voucher if needed. Several of our normal referral partners are closed over Christmas but we have compiled a list of others you can talk to. If you have any issues getting a voucher, please call us on 01285 896360 and leave a message and we will call you back during our opening hours (listed above).

Support Availability over Christmas | Cirencester Foodbank

Can I volunteer with the Foodbank over Christmas?

Cirencester Foodbank is closed on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, so we don’t have volunteer opportunities on those days. We may have other chances for volunteers to help out however, our health and safety and safeguarding policies mean that all our volunteers need to undertake training before volunteering with us. This means that we are not always able to accommodate ‘ad-hoc’ or one-off volunteering. We do have our Christmas National Collection at Cirencester and Tetbury Tesco on the 28th, 29th and 30th November, which does allow for one-off volunteering. If interested, do get in touch!

Thank you anyway for your interest – when we have new volunteer opportunities they will be displayed on our volunteer information page.

How can I donate food?

Whilst we are no fans of Christmas Creep (where Christmas seems to appear in the stores earlier each year!) we do have to start packing our emergency parcels early to ensure we have built sufficient to distribute by Christmas. Therefore we ask that donations are with us by the 30th of November if possible. Why not come by Tetbury or Cirencester Tescos and buy a donation in-store to give to us whilst we are there?

… And can you collect?

We will not be able to arrange to pick up collections of food over the Christmas period, as increased need results in our van and driver being very busy delivering emergency parcels. If you would like to donate food to Cirencester Foodbank, please do this by buying in-store and putting the item in one of the collection points.

If you do have a larger donation of food, please MAKE AN APPOINTMENT to drop it off at our warehouse. Please email [email protected] to reserve your time slot.

Are you collecting toy donations?

Cirencester Foodbank does not collect toys for distribution. Instead, we partner with Cirencester Salvation Army and their toy appeal. You can find out how to donate a toy to them here -> Cirencester Salvation Army | Facebook

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