Members of Antrim and Newtownabbey Community Fridge Network.
An independent member of Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council’s Audit and Risk Committee has urged the local authority to meet the needs of the most vulnerable in the community.
Speaking at a meeting of the committee on Wednesday evening, Grace Nesbitt who is not a councillor, said the demand for the borough’s Christmas toy scheme “reflects the pressures that some members of the borough are experiencing”.
“This need no doubt will continue to grow. It is important that the council meets the need of some of those most in need in the borough,” she said.
“The trend shows that need is going to increase. We need to be mindful of those who are the most vulnerable and give due and careful consideration to meeting increasing need.”
Committee chair Glengormley Sinn Fein Councillor Michael Goodman commented that some services are “short-term” to provide support to the most vulnerable.
“They are not intended as long-term supports and are under review constantly.”
Macedon Alliance Cllr BillyWebb MBE said:
“The council has just recently agreed to set up an anti-poverty steering group made up of members from each party to try to address this.”
Last week, the council announced the launch of a community fridge network across the borough in association with community organisations.
A community fridge or larder is a “shared, non-judgemental space that combines the efforts of local people and businesses towards reducing food waste and redistributing food to ease food poverty”. The facility is not means-tested and can be used by anyone.
Community fridges are located at Dunanney Centre, Rathcoole; A Safe Space to be Me, Crumlin; Antrim Community Fridge, Castle Mall; United Parish, Ballyclare; First Randalstown Presbyterian Church and Mayfield Community Association.
The schemes are funded locally through a grant from the council’s Hardship Fund which is part of a £4m sum made available by the Department for Communities to support the most vulnerable affected by the cost of living crisis.
Last month, Antrim and Newtownabbey councillors agreed to the council facilitating a Christmas toy collection for a fifth consecutive year after acknowledging that the initiative has “demonstrated a need in the borough”.
In the run-up to Christmas 2023, 6,800 new and pre-loved toys were donated to the council’s toy scheme supporting 1,100 families.
Councillors have heard previously that donations decreased last year, however, due to the cost of living crisis.
More than 7,500 good quality school uniform items were donated to a school uniform exchange scheme in the borough in 2023. The 11 participating community organisations in the school uniform re-use scheme helped to support more than 1,000 families.