Lockdown is driving hundreds more families across into desperate financial situations, and more needs to be done to help them.

That's the message from Medway Foodbank manager Lorraine Schulze, who says she is being contacted by an increasing number people who would never have needed help before.

And while she thanked the people of Medway for their ongoing donations, she said action was needed at a council and governmental level to stop the crisis.

"We've seen massive increase in usage," she said. "It was a 200 percent increase in April this year, compared to last April. That was the first lockdown. Our data is always three to four weeks behind, but it's feeling like it's heading that way again.

"At the height of lockdown we did 140 deliveries a week. Over the summer we were looking at 60 to 70 a week. Last time I counted three weeks ago we were in the 90s again and now it seems it's heading up over 100 again."

Lorraine said she believed a combination of factors had led to the increased pressure, with the latest furlough offer from the government coming after companies had already begun restructuring.

Furthermore, she said existing problems in obtaining payments from the Universal Credit system had compounded the situation

Those factors meant people that might never have approached a foodbank were being forced to do so.

Lorraine added: "I spoke to a guy recently - an electrician - he had never been out of work and never been to a foodbank. He had lost his job with a private company, he's applied for 40 jobs and had got three interviews. He'd got offered three jobs and was going to take the one that paid the least because it wasn't with a private company and he thought that was the most stable. He was literally trying to keep the roof over his kids' heads until he got paid.

"He said it was a one-off - he'd never used the foodbank, felt embarrassed and said he would pay us back, which people don't need to do. There are lots of these kind of situations."

Coronavirus has also changed the way the foodbank operates, with a delivery service run by volunteers shuttling between the warehouse, packing centre and people's homes.

The foodbank, is also moving to a bigger warehouse, which also brings an increased rent to add to the pressures.

"We've changed the whole way we work," added Lorraine. "We used to have five food bank centres with 150 volunteers in all or centres. Clients could come in with vouchers, get a cup of coffee and a listening ear along with the food.

"Now we're just delivering to them. We have sign posting sheets that have details of various agencies they can call about different issues, but it's not the same as being able to talk face to face."

She said the government and councils also needed to react quickly to the situation, as the figures they were seeing painted a bleak picture.

"In 2018 we helped around 5,000 people a year, last year we were looking at around 7,000 and this year we've seen about 10,500.

"We're a Trussell Trust Foodbank so we're part of a national network, and the trust supports in the local welfare payment, which is coming through off the back of Marcus Rashford's free school meals campaign. The Government has done a U-turn and said they will support free school meals, but they will send the money to councils and councils will choose who will give that money out.

"Locally it's the Citizens Advice, and families will have to apply for it, but these families have already applied for that funding. I don't like having extra bureaucracy for families in need."

"The Trussell Trust would like to see an increase in the local welfare provision, but you can only use it once, and we've got people coming in month after month.

"The government also need to get rid of the five-six weeks wait for payments."

"I was talking to the council and I said a lot of these families are coming from your organisations - their clients are getting referred to us, and that's fine but in the long term I'm looking at the council and thinking you might have to take some of these - they're from safeguarding teams and social services early help teams."

To help the foodbank, people can use an app called Spareable, or visit www.medway.foodbank.org.uk for further information.

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