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Food bank delivers Christmas spirit in Oxfordshire with 'Big Lunch'

BBC Guests at the Christmas Big Lunch at Exeter Hall in Kidlington, OxfordBBC
The 150 guests tuck into the Christmas lunch at Exeter Hall

With Christmas fast approaching, many people have scaled back their plans as financial pressure on households continues.

To help people who are struggling and bring the community together, a food bank held a waste-free festive "Big Lunch" for 150 people, in Kidlington, Oxfordshire, on Friday.

Cherwell Collective runs its surplus food bank at the village's Exeter Hall, with more than 3,000 people registered to come along and collect food when they need it.

Emily Connally, head chef and founder of the collective, said the group had fed 10,000 guests between April and November this year.

With the cost of living an increasing concern, the collective expanded its offering last month to include three hot meals a day, available three days a week to anyone who needs it.

It has attracted 450 people each week, many of whom do not have anyone to eat with. Just like Friday's festive lunch, the meals are as much about bringing people together as feeding them.

Norma Beard, one of the volunteers, peeled more than a thousand surplus or locally grown sprouts to make the Christmas Big Lunch happen.

She is a familiar face at Exeter Hall, alongside her husband John, who has dementia.

Volunteer Norma Beard, who says the group has turned their lives around
Norma Beard cares for her husband and says the group has turned their lives around

Since the successive Covid lockdowns, the couple have struggled with loneliness but they said the project had turned their lives around.

Mrs Beard, who is a full-time carer for her husband, told BBC News: "We moved here five years ago and didn't really know anybody.

"Now you can't go out for a walk without saying hello to half a dozen people. It's a very friendly place.

"My husband has got dementia, so it's just good for him to be among people and among what's going on."

Kim Day, a teaching assistant on maternity leave, said visiting the on-site food bank meant there was more to go around for her family - and the surplus food would not go to waste.

Kim Day, one of the 150 guests at the Big Lunch
Kim Day was one of the 150 guests at the Big Lunch

The mother-of-three said the cost of living crisis meant that "everybody is struggling at the moment".

"I know so many people who've never had to use anything like this, and I know there are loads of new families that are suddenly finding themselves in similar situations," she told BBC News.

"This is so important as a support."

Retired NHS worker Elaine volunteers at the project with her friend of 44 years, former Vogue model Maxine, who has aphasia.

Elaine and Maxine, both volunteers at the project in Kidlington
Elaine (left) and Maxine (right) both volunteer at the project in Kidlington

"Volunteering always makes me appreciate what I've got. It means I can help Maxine," Elaine said.

Asphasia makes facial recognition and memory challenging but Maxine has no problems remembering her long-time friend.

"It's something different and I meet many nice people. It means I can do things to help, as I can still remember what it means to be good to one another," she told the BBC.

Lucy, a single parent who works for the NHS, said the food bank had been "a lifeline" since Covid and had used the service over the course of the summer, as well as Halloween.

The 37-year-old said the food bank helped "get us through", adding: "For Christmas, we spend it with my mum, so it's 14 of us all together, which is a lot of people to cook for."

And Lucy said the impact of the cost of living crisis meant her children would not get the presents they once would.

But while money may be short, thanks to the Big Lunch, they can still get into the Christmas spirit, she explained: "We used to do outings at Christmas, but we don't do that now, so something like this is really nice for them."