The charity undertakes a range of work to help those in the industry, whether working in retail, manufacturing or some other part of the supply chain, in difficult circumstances through no fault of their own.
For example, living with her husband and young family, Liz has worked in a variety of food manufacturing roles. She recently went on to maternity leave and gave birth to a baby boy. Sadly, he was born with Spina Bifida which caused a significant amount of stress for both parents.
Liz’s husband couldn’t work due to caring responsibilities meaning the family has no income other than statutory sick pay. GroceryAid awarded a crisis grant to help alleviate the financial and emotional drain on the family.
COVID-19 fund
Steven applied to GroceryAid in April 2020 due to the impact the COVID-19 pandemic was having on his life. For Steven especially, these were difficult times as he had worked at a food manufacturing warehouse since he was a teenager and was now in his 50’s being advised he must self-isolate due to the severity of his health conditions.
This, together with the recent break down of his marriage, had a detrimental effect on Steven’s mental health and he was struggling to come to terms with the separation from not only his wife but also his job.
GroceryAid awarded a grant to help him to manage his finances through the transition so he could focus on his wellbeing. Moving forward, as a colleague of the grocery industry, Steven has access to free relationship counselling through the charity's Relate partnership. Ongoing practical and emotional support will also be provided to him through the GroceryAid Helpline.
The COVID-19 fund was launched at the start of the pandemic and is available to all grocery colleagues. The non-repayable grants are to help those suffering from a sudden change in their life which could include a bereavement, poor living conditions or a sudden gap in income due to the impact of COVID-19.
'Hard to put into words'
“It's hard to put into words how much this grant will help me. I’ve had a horrible year with poor health. This is a fantastic boost at the moment. Very much appreciated doesn't quite do it justice.”
Myles knew of GroceryAid having attended fundraising events during his fifteen-year sales career with companies such as Dairy Crest, Grace Foods and Premier Foods. In 2018 following redundancy from a small to medium-sized enterprise that did not provide outplacement support, Myles contacted its Helpline to access the Renovo back to work service.
“GroceryAid, through Renovo Work Friend programme, was really helpful as a sounding board while going through my own personal career reboot. Access to a mentor was very useful when preparing for interviews, upgrading my LinkedIn profile, and suggesting multiple approaches to find my next career move. Simply having a voice at the end of the phone was extremely encouraging. I can’t speak highly enough of the work GroceryAid does and of the positive impact it has had on my own life.”
