Rotary zooms in to help replace food bank’s old rattle trap

It’s been a trusty workhorse, but North Cotswold Foodbank’s old van is reaching the end of the road. So it’s three cheers for Rotary who have come to the rescue with a fundraising pledge to help buy a replacement.

Rotarians know the old Iveco van well and have been volunteer drivers for many years. They collect groceries from supermarkets, schools, churches and surgeries, and deliver food parcels to food bank outlets all over the North Cotswolds. “A lot of Rotarians like to help out. We see the food bank as a crucial facility in the current climate,” said John Barber from North Cotswold Rotary.

He and his fellow drivers know how temperamental the old van can be. “It scraped through its MOT, and occasionally it’s been off the road. Luckily one of us has a Land-Rover so we used that instead. But we couldn’t have done the job in an ordinary car. The van is all racked out to take food crates – it’s not a job for a Fiat Panda.”

Foodbank Development Manager Kevin Carden is very grateful. “The old van was a gift from Tesco in 2022 – which was very generous. But now it’s 10 years old with 140,000 miles on the clock, it’s falling to bits, and it’s only a matter of time before it packs up completely,” he said. “The latest bill was £1,200 for new brakes, tyres and a leaking radiator.” He reckons the charity will need about £20,000 for a replacement. “For an organisation which is run almost entirely by volunteers and relies on donations, that’s a big ask so we’re really grateful to Rotary. Without them we’d be stuck – probably with a flat tyre and a spanner in our hand at the side of a road.”

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