Students at St Benedict’s School, Ealing, have made a special Christmas collection for Ealing Foodbank, donating over 50 Christmas hampers.

The hampers were created by each of the school’s form-groups – from year 7 to the sixth-form – filling the school hall with Christmas cheer and requiring several mini-bus trips to deliver them to the foodbank.

The festive collections included seasonal items such as Christmas cakes, Christmas puddings, selection boxes and Advent calendars, along with standard items such as tinned fruit, tea and coffee.

Throughout this term the school has made weekly collections of non-perishable food and toiletries for Ealing Foodbank, which is part of The Trussell Trust’s UK network of 1,200 foodbanks. ‘On behalf of Ealing Foodbank, I want to say a massive thank you to all pupils, parents and staff for the amazing Christmas donation,’ said Hilary Padmore from Ealing Foodbank. ‘Together the three deliveries weighed 890kg and we will be able to help many families to have at least a little Christmas cheer.’

‘I am very pleased and proud that St Benedict’s pupils and their families have been so generous in their support of Ealing Foodbank,’ commented Andrew Johnson, headmaster. ‘As more and more families are turning to foodbanks in the wake of the pandemic, it is vital that we think beyond ourselves and do what we can to support people in our community.’

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