In despair at problems in her area, mother-of-four Michelle Dornelly set up a food hub that has fed thousands – many of them refused by food banks. But the unpaid, full-time work takes a heavy toll
Published:
6:08 PM March 16, 2021
Updated:
9:23 AM March 17, 2021
Hard working volunteers from Hackney charity Children With Voices sort supplies at one of its food hubs.
- Credit: Grey Hutton/National Geographic Society Covid-19 Emergency Fund
A Hackney charity has ramped up the number of meals it is providing to people in need thanks to a supermarket app.
The M&S app, launched in March 2020, notifies charities when surplus food is available.
It has seen M&S branches on Mare Street and Fenchurch Street provide more than 28,871 meals to local communities, including Hackney organisation Children With Voices.
The local charity says the food redistribution scheme has been vital to its work as a community food hub during the pandemic and has helped it support over 700 people a week, as well as open a new hub.
Supporting children through the pandemic in Hackney â a photo essay
Ava sits quietly on the sofa in the living room at home in Hackney. After school the eight-year-old often doesnât leave her room and since lockdown hasnât felt comfortable leaving the house at all.
Photographer Grey Hutton has been photographing the impact of the pandemic and the community response in his home borough of Hackney, east London, meeting local families and documenting the support networks, with the support of the National Geographic Society Covid-19 Emergency Fund
by GreyHutton
Mon 1 Mar 2021 02.00 EST
Last modified on Tue 2 Mar 2021 05.09 EST
âThe only time I come out of my bedroom is when my mum calls me,â Ava Ogarro quietly confesses to me as we chat on the sofa. Sheâs eight years old, and the youngest of three living with their mum, Joanne Piggin, in a two-bedroom apartment on the Frampton Park Estate in Hackney, east London. Ava hasnât left the flat in days,
A Hackney mother, Melissa Francis, has been tackling the digital divide in her community by distributing digital devices to families in need through a new organisation Bridge The Gap.