I used to follow the Archers regularly and now listen frequently enough to keep in touch with what is happening. The Archers, in case you have not come across it, is a very long running soap opera / drama on the radio, about life in a fictional English midlands village called Ambridge.
Ed and Emma are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet. He is in farming, and his income is dropping. She stays at home to look after the children and childcare costs make it uneconomic to work. Their limited income has been stretched too far recently, with a water bill and car repairs.
I did wonder if the programme was building up to a Foodbank, as it is a very topical programme and often features current concerns.
Emma was in Borchester, the nearby market town, to shop. She found she had no money, as Ed had had to buy petrol. She found herself outside the foodbank, and went in to ask for help. The foodbank worker explained she was unable to help without a referral, which could come from the doctor, health visitor or CAB. This would be true of the foodbank I volunteer for, also. But, unlike our foodbank, this one could give her and her young daughter lunch.
And then while she was there, Emma's mother turned up, carrying food donated in Ambridge for the foodbank.
Emma had not told her family of their financial problems because she did not want to worry them. Her mum then took her shopping, and the cupboards were filled up. But Ed was cross, upset that they had had to rely on others' charity and that he was not able to provide for his family.
There's a lot of discussion on an Archers messageboard about why Ed and Emma appear not to be claiming or receiving benefits, but I thought the feelings of both characters for their predicament were worth contemplating. And the foodbank felt like a real one, with real policies.
