Vital Falkirk food pantry under threat as council set to close its home

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A food pantry that supports more than 100 families in one of Falkirk 's most deprived areas could be forced to close by April when Falkirk Council shuts the community centre it is based in.

Now the team behind Martha's Pantry are urging Falkirk Council to keep Slamannan Community Education Centre open until an alternative venue can be found to keep the vital support going.

Falkirk MP Euan Stainbank is backing the committee's plea and he has written to Falkirk Council, urging them to 'get back round the table' and delay closure until all options have been explored. Read more: Falkirk communities urged to help protect vulnerable who could be exploited Retired minister Monica MacDonald, chair of Martha's Pantry, is fearful that the centre's closure will mean an end to the vital support the pantry provides to 129 households in Slamannan and Limerigg.Since opening in December 2022, numbers have risen steadily and there are more than 60 children among the families being helped."These families really depend on this service," said Monica. "This is an area of high deprivation - it's the third highest in Falkirk and how can the council take away a food resource without an alternative?"Members pay £2 for a bag of food that they choose from the pantry's stock, with extra fruit, vegetables, eggs and bread also available along with essentials such as toilet rolls, cleaning products and deodorant.The committee uses funding and donations to buy fresh fruit and veg every week that can be given to families along with some meat."At Christmas we gave everybody a parcel with a box of biscuits, a tin of sweets, that sort of thing, and some people were crying because they don't have the money to buy these things," said committee member