Sparkhill Foodbank

Sparkhill Foodbank is one of numerous projects run by Narthex Sparkhill, a registered charity based at St. John’s Church, Sparkhill and is the largest and most well-known foodbank in Birmingham.
We have been running for just over 10 years. In the financial year 2021/2022 we provided food parcels to 15,888 people, with 5,119 of these going to children. This is a 40% increase in numbers since before Covid-19 and we are on track to see another 25% increase by the end of this financial year. Demand is increasing on a weekly basis due to the current cost of living crisis, there is an ever increasing number of individuals and families struggling to make ends meet and are therefore dependent upon our service.

We run 6 satellite foodbanks around south-east Birmingham, with locations in Balsall Heath, Sparkhill, Tyseley, Hall Green and Stechford where parcels are distributed by dedicated teams of volunteers directly to clients and we also supply emergency parcels to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital to be distributed by the chaplaincy team who support those being discharged.
We are funded by various grants which help to run the foodbank and to recruit and train 100+ volunteers. The grants do not include the cost of the food parcels so the project is dependent on the goodwill and generosity of local people, faith groups, schools, agencies and businesses to donate. We strongly value all those who donate to us and those who volunteer their time as these are the individuals who allow us to continue to help those who are most vulnerable and in need in the local community.