Greater Anglia staff have launched an appeal to help families in food crisis this winter.

Donation points opened on Monday 4 November at Colchester, Clacton-on-Sea, Colchester Town, Frinton-on-Sea, Manningtree, Thorpe-le-Soken, Walton-on-the-Naze, and Wivenhoe stations for five weeks until Friday 13 December.

The customer donations will be collected and sent to Essex’s busiest foodbank, the Colchester Foodbank.

In 2023, the Colchester Foodbank, which is based at the Tollgate Retail Park, fed 24,500 people in crisis. This is a 25% increase in people helped compared to the previous year.

All donations are welcome. However, the foodbank has indicated that items most required are dry and tinned food such as rice, potatoes, tomatoes, puddings, custard, jam and peanut butter. Small multipack chocolates are also needed, as is long-life milk and juice.

Steve Watts, Assistant Area Customer Service Manager for Colchester, said: “The Colchester Foodbank is incredible and makes such a difference to those that need them in the areas that we service.

“As we head into the winter months, we are really proud to be supporting the Colchester Foodbank and hope that passengers will back this initiative and help make a difference.”

Greater Anglia’s customer and community engagement manager, Alan Neville, said: “We do not think that anyone in our community should have to face going hungry and we are therefore pleased to support the Colchester Foodbank.”