West Sussex magazine marks 17 years and donates celebration cake to food bank

It offers advertising and editorial opportunities to local businesses and organisations. It is delivered free by a team of locally based teenagers.

To celebrate 17 years in business Pretty Bakes by Marie offered to make a 17 th Birthday Cake for rh fourteen which was featured on their November front cover. Marie said, “It was a pleasure to be able to create a fun 17th birthday cake for our local magazine, rh fourteen.”

Pretty Bakes by Marie is based in Ifold and makes large and small celebration cakes and biscuits. They are a regular advertiser in rh fourteen.

Marie and Sheila came up with an idea to donate the cake to Horsham District Food Bank. Sheila donated it on a very wet November morning and met with some of the staff at the Food Bank.

Sheila comments, “It is a fantastic operation that is so much more than a Food Bank. Marie and I were delighted to donate the cake to them.”

The food bank was very grateful to receive the cake and deliver it to their clients. There was even some left over for the volunteers!

Horsham Matters which runs Horsham District Food Bank has seen demand for all their services increase as the cost of living crisis hits the local community.

Amalia Lovett, Network and Campaigns Lead for Horsham Matters, said, “We aim to provide a holistic approach providing household budget support, debt & benefit advice, but the cost of living has pushed many people already living on tight budgets into destitution. We are asking those that are able to support us, at a time when demand for our services is so high; we need both money & food.”

They are expecting demand to keep increasing as costs continue to rise, and many more people seek support, many for the first time in their lives. As a result, the charity is opening an additional foodbank session and extending the opening hours of three others. There is a mobile service that goes to Sainsbury’s in Billinghurst once a week.

As residents struggle to warm their homes due to financial stress, Horsham Matters is hoping to ease that worry by creating warm spaces for residents to visit during the day, and the charity is working with other organisations to create a directory of the warm spaces operating throughout the district over the coming months.

These spaces will offer a warm welcome and free hot drinks, with some offering hot meals and snacks. A current list of warm spaces can be found online at: https://www.horshamdistrictwarmspaces.com/

To find out about accessing the foodbank and any of the support services, please call 0300 124 0204, option 1, or email [email protected].

Food donations can be dropped off at their offices at 1 Redkiln Close, Monday-Friday 9:30am - 2pm. Financial donations can be made at - www.horsham-matters.org.uk. All donations are gratefully received.