Reuse Network welcomes Trussell Trust’s new report

The Reuse Network welcomes today’s report by the Trussell Trust on the impact of COVID-19 on food banks.

Craig Anderson, CEO, Reuse Network says: “We join the Trussell Trust in their concerns on the impact of COVID-19 pushing people even further into poverty. The Reuse Network’s members act as furniture banks across the UK and have been telling us of desperate need for basic electrical appliances and essential furniture at a time when they had to close their doors in the face of a public health crisis.

“We join the Trussell Trust in calling the government to:

• Protect people’s incomes by locking in the £20 uplift to Universal Credit;
• Help people hold on to more of their benefits by suspending benefit debt deductions until a fairer approach to repayments can be introduced;
• Make local safety nets as strong as possible by investing £250m in local welfare assistance in England every year;
• Rethink the Job Retention Scheme coming to an end.

“We are witnessing a surge in other household products being needed before the furlough scheme comes to end and we expect this to escalate further with the end of the furlough scheme.”

Note to the editors:

• The Reuse Network is a membership body of hundreds of furniture reuse charities in the UK. Working side-by-side with our members, we help them raise income, reduce dependence on grants, get better access to more household goods, and create opportunities for those in need.
• The Trussell Trust’s report is called Lockdown, lifelines, and the long haul ahead: The impact of Covid-19 on food banks in the Trussell Trust network. The report can be accessed here: www.trusselltrust.org/heriot-watt-research-2020
• Craig Anderson, CEO is available for interview.
• Case studies of our members’ response to lockdown can be found on our news page in a series called Lockdown Life.

Media Contact:
Claire Charras
Communications and Marketing Manager
claire.charras@reuse-network.org.uk
0772 6358 243