By Luke Upton, Head of Communications, Localgiving, May 2025

It would be easy to miss the headquarters of Cardiff Foodbank (Banc Bwyd Caerdydd) walk about half an hour away from the hustle and bustle of the capital’s centre, cross the road by a Lidl, stroll past a primary school and turn into a small industrial park, but once through a modest door, you enter a large vibrant  facility making a big impact to many across the Welsh capital.

Cardiff Foodbank have a simple aim, but one with some deeply rooted challenges and complexities – they want to see a Cardiff where no one goes hungry. The team provide individuals and families with emergency food and essentials and partner with groups across the city to offer additional support and training. They distribute around 20,000 parcels of nutritionally balanced non-perishable food a year, each enough to last three days. And their 14,000sq ft Splott HQ receives, organises and distributes food and supplies across the city.

On visiting earlier this month I headed through the offices straight into their warehouse, once the site of a factory making giant dinosaurs for film, TV and theme parks, it now packed full of pallets, boxes and trays, all neatly stacked, ordered and ready for distribution. A huge door is open at the back awaiting the arrival of a lorry, whilst volunteers buzz around, all focussed on their tasks. In truth it feels more like the back end of a major supermarket, or considering they don’t count, but weigh, all their food, perhaps it's more akin to a quayside, awaiting a giant ship onto which they can load their produce.

The food is all sorted by type and ‘best before’ dates, with a focus on reducing wastage. Volunteers at the local distribution centres request food from the warehouse as required and then drivers, also volunteers deliver it to them where it is distributed to people in financial crisis.

Mark Tugwell, the Cardiff Foodbank’s Operation Manager, who was with the charity at the very start, tells me more about its development: “It began in 2009, initially on a small scale, in response to one of the founders spotting direct need in their local community. They saw this as a call to action calling together some friends to see how people in such desperate straits could be helped, and it’s grown from there. That was in Credit Crunch, and obviously in the years since then there have been a number of other crises to contend with. Back then we said we were dealing with what we called ‘hidden hunger’ whereas now it’s become something quite different.”

Taking this focus on change forward, Rachel Biggs, the CEO tells us more: “The need has doubled in the past five years. Whilst foodbanks once supported people during moments of crisis – a sudden job loss, a breakup, an illness – now the need is driven by systemic factors which cause low income, such as the level of benefits, benefit delays and insecure work. We also help asylum seekers and refugees referred to us who may find it harder to navigate and access support. These are deep-rooted, long-term problems that cause huge problems for communities across Cardiff and have shifted our work and perspective too.”

With these evolving challenges they are looking more at solutions beyond just distributing parcels, working with other organisations to address some of the root causes of hunger. The Cardiff Foodbank team are aware that emergency food is only part of the solution, they also  want to support people to get the advice and guidance they need. Knowing the system isn’t working for many, they are working on influencing and creating change, using the data and experience from the support they already give the community.

There’s a real buzz around the Foodbank HQ, there’s a small team of 12 paid staff, but their work would be impossible without the support of 220 volunteers. In my conversations with charities across the country, I hear so often about the challenges of finding volunteers, particularly post-Covid, but here in Cardiff Foodbank they seem to be bucking the trend.

Rachel Biggs tells me more about their team; “Our volunteer team is absolutely fantastic. Many of them are retired, have had good careers and now want to give back. I think people like the practical nature of what we do, there’s a clear result of it –they can see that their support is helping people in the city. There’s a real community among our volunteers which we love. But we also have roles beyond those in the warehouse, we have office needs – communications, campaigning fundraising – so there is something for everyone! We are working on a new mobile distribution service, with a van, going into different areas, so changing developments lead to needing different types of volunteer support. . So if anyone reading this wants to get involved, please get in touch!”

As our time comes to an end, I ask Mark about their fundraising, with Cardiff Foodbank having been supported by Localgiving since 2017: “Over £1.1m has come to us through the Localgiving platform, and this fundraising has been absolutely crucial for our development. We really appreciate the consistency and commitment from our donors. We login in the morning and see the donations through every day. I remember the first time we did, and it really was incredible. The platform is easy to use, and most importantly gives confidence to our donors.”

Rachel adds to this, underlining the importance of online donations; “Regular donations through Direct Debit are fantastic. Even £3, the price of a cup of coffee is enormously useful to us. The grants landscape is challenging. And food donations are down, as the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite.  So, we are incredibly grateful for all our supporters and regular donors through Localgiving and elsewhere. Donations allow us to be strategic, including buying food that we need in bulk. Food banks shouldn't exist. We don't want to be here, but we'll be here for as long as we're needed.”

One thing that shines through on my visit to Cardiff Foodbank is the community spirit, both Mark and Rachel keep bringing the conversation back to the people at the heart of what they do. Without the people – the volunteers and donors – the place wouldn’t exist. There’s no ego to be found in this corner of Cardiff. As Mark neatly sums up - “It’s all about the public benefit. It’s always about someone else – the volunteers, the donors, the people we help.”

Photos courtesy of Cardiff Foodbank, thanks to all the team for welcoming me. 

---> Support the Foodbank's amazing support of their community with a donation here 

---> Interested in volunteering, then click here