In our services we collect food, toiletries and more for Gorse Hill Baptist Church’s Boxes of Hope project. Heather from the project tells us more:
We started our Boxes of Hope Project on a very small scale in partnership with Transforming lives for good in June 2020. The project provides and delivers food parcels to people across Swindon. Anyone that is in need can self-refer for a single food parcel after which we take referrals from both statutory and non-statutory agencies when further support is needed. During 2025, we delivered 2,265 food parcels, feeding 3304 adults and 3,346 children. Since starting the project in June 2020, we have delivered 15,284 food parcels, feeding 22,060 adults and 25,972 children. We also distribute Healthy Start Vitamins through the food parcels to those who are eligible.
We put a variety of cupboard items in our food parcels including breakfast cereals, squash, UHT milk, tea, coffee, pasta and rice. Tins of baked beans, tuna, tomatoes, vegetables and fruit. Packet of cup-a-soup, biscuits, crisps, sweets and jars of pasta sauce. We also include toiletries where we can (toothpaste, tooth brushes, shower gel, shampoo and conditioner).
During the last few years the congregation at St Andrew’s Church, North Swindon have partnered with us in supporting the project and have donated much needed food and toiletries to the project which has been amazing and has helped to support many families that are struggling in our town. We are very grateful to St Andrews for all the support that they have given to us which helps the grant money go much further therefore helping many more people.