Places for People provide vital support to communities this winter

Places for People, the UK’s leading social enterprise dedicated to transforming lives and nurturing thriving communities, is expanding its support for customers this winter by partnering with 49 warm banks and food banks across the UK – seven of which are in Yorkshire.

The group specialises in placemaking, regeneration, development, investment management, property management, and leisure managing more than 245,000 properties, providing homes for around 500,000 customers, and operating 100 leisure facilities, welcoming 1.9 million visits each month.

This latest initiative is part of its annual Winter Ready campaign, which promotes essential services available through group subsidiary Places Impact. The resources will be provided to the LS14 Trust Food Pantry in Leeds, and Darnall Wellbeing Welcome Place (Warm Space) at Darnall Primary Care Centre, the Herdings Social Cafe and Food Growing Project, MaTReC Social Cafe and High Green Development Trust Community Space – each of which are in Sheffield. In Bradford, the campaign will also support Lower Grange Community Hub.

Marcus Hulme, director of Places Impact at Places for People explained: "Winter brings significant challenges, such as an increased risk of damp and mould in colder homes. Through our Winter Ready campaign, we’re not just equipping people in Yorkshire with the knowledge to recognise and manage these issues; we’re also ensuring our customers know they have a vital safety net.

“By supporting food and warm banks in the Yorkshire region, we’re providing tangible, accessible resources to help these areas navigate the toughest months of the year with confidence and support."

The annual initiative follows Places for People’s Wellbeing Survey results, which highlighted a continued need for services that support food and heat provision. The survey gathered thoughts of over 5,000 PfP Customers from across the country with over a quarter of respondents in the North saying they can’t put the heating on in the cold and 17% of people stating they ran out of food and couldn’t afford to buy more. The survey also saw people, nationwide, call for more support across the board this winter, with almost one-fifth of respondents demonstrating an interest in low-cost food provision, and 12% of people actively looking for support with their energy bills.

Marcus added: “We are committed to customer engagement, listening to the people living in and around our communities and making evidence-based decisions to help their lives.

“Sadly, these survey results reinforce what we already know: many of our customers across Yorkshire continue to struggle. By supporting local food and warm banks and highlighting additional resources this winter, we aim to alleviate some of this pressure and support the wellbeing of our customers.”

For more information about the Winter Ready campaign, visit Supporting You to Get Ready for Winter - Places for People.