The Morgan Foundation underwrites food bank’s debt management scheme
The Morgan Foundation, the charity established by Redrow Chairman, Steve Morgan, in 2001, has agreed to donate a total of £15k to the Southport Foodbank to extend its services. The food bank, which gave 40k meals to Southport people in crisis last year, plans to use the cash to set up Southport Community Money Advice [SCMA] to offer debt counselling and help clients tackle the root cause of their problems. 

Southport Foodbank has received a vital £15,000 boost to enable it to extend its services.

North west charity, The Morgan Foundation, will donate £5,000 per year over three years to help underwrite the foodbank’s debt management scheme.

Last year the service handed out nearly 40,000 meals to local people in crisis but has now also set up Southport Community Money Advice (SCMA) to provide a robust response to those looking for sound debt advice.

Foodbank manager, John Sullivan, said: “Debt is a significant contributory factor to the problems experienced by many of our clients and often they don’t know how to break out of it or where to turn for help.

“SCMA provides debt counselling primarily, though not exclusively, for foodbank clients, aiming to help them budget accordingly and set up payment plans with their creditors which they can afford. The grant will go a long way to help fund an experienced administrator who will also manage the SCMA team.”

The Morgan Foundation was set up in 2001 by founder and chairman of Redrow PLC, Steve Morgan, and supports charities across Merseyside, North Wales, West Cheshire and North Shropshire.

Foundation administrator, Jane Harris, said: “Foodbanks have sprung up across our remit area as a result of the financial difficulties that people can so easily find themselves in. The Trustees of the Morgan Foundation awarded this grant recognising the extra services that SCMA provides.”

For John Sullivan it means Southport Foodbank can provide not only emergency food to thousands of clients during the course of the year but it can actually help them effectively tackle the root cause of their problems:

He said: “This grant means we will not only be supporting those in crisis by putting food on their table but we can actively help them break out of it.

“We are hugely grateful to The Morgan Foundation for enabling us to offer this.”

For more details about Southport Foodbank visit: southport.foodbank.org.uk