Addressing food poverty with Zoe Marlow

Meet the Mancunian -10.10 -Zoe Marlow transcript

Intro

[00:00:00] Hello listeners and welcome to season 10 of the Meet the Mancunian podcast: social impact stories from Manchester. I'm your host, Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe, offering you a warm Mancunian welcome. I'm delighted to bring to you Season 10 where I celebrate social impact community heroes across Manchester.

[00:00:27] I hope, dear listeners, you can learn from their life experiences, the challenges they've overcome, and their passion for their cause. My aim for the Meet the Mancunian podcast is to encourage you to live your life with purpose and impact, inspired by the stories my guests share every Tuesday throughout the season.

[00:00:47] You can listen to the podcast on Apple podcast, Spotify, or my website  www.meettthemancunian.co.uk. Get ready for another season full of thought-provoking conversations and life-changing stories.

Meet Zoe Marlow: Food Bank Manager

[00:01:02] Welcome to the 10th episode of Season 10 of the Meet the Mancunian podcast: social impact stories from Manchester.

[00:01:10] Passionate about addressing food poverty?

[00:01:13] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: We hear from Zoe Marlow, Food Bank manager, Dandelion Community Church in this episode.

[00:01:19] In Zoe's own words.

[00:01:21] Zoe Marlow: I like to be the bridge to someone getting the food. But sometimes it is not just what you are giving them in a carrier bag, it's how you treat them. And how they feel when they're around you and the other volunteers.

[00:01:38] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Thank you Zoe, for joining me today.

[00:01:41] Zoe Marlow: Hello, thank you for having me.

[00:01:43] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: It's lovely to know we are almost neighbours as well besides everything else that we are connected with.

Zoe's Personal Journey

[00:01:49] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Tell us about what sparked your interest in helping the community. Was there a defining moment that sparked that journey for you?

[00:01:56] Zoe Marlow: It was my own personal story. I needed help and I was welcomed into the Dandelion Community where I am now. I was welcomed there. I was given the help and support I needed. And I found that I wanted to help people that were struggling the same as I was, and I didn't want anyone to be alone and go without. So, that's what spurred me on to do what I do.

[00:02:26] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: That is lovely when we have these lived experiences that we can actually convert into something good.

Dandelion Food Bank: How It Works

[00:02:32] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: How did you get involved with Dandelion Food Bank and what does it do?

[00:02:37] Zoe Marlow: I got involved with the Dandelion Food Bank through people I knew there who helped me. And I'd been going to that church when I was quite young, so I was a part of that community anyway. Then I learned more about the food bank and how it's run, and I wanted to be a part of that.

[00:02:57] We provide emergency food parcels for people who have no other way of getting food. It's a voucher-based system. It's three square meals for three days. You get your breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And it's three days worth. And it's all tinned and packet food. Most of it is out donation as well from the public and it's supported by The Trussell Trust as well.

[00:03:29] And we help a wide range of people. From homeless people to people who are working 40 plus hours and still can't afford food the rent increase, or gas and electric fuel poverty, there's so many different people that need our help and support.

[00:03:53] It's nice to end the stigma of food poverty as well. People are ashamed to coming to us and they're ashamed that they need help. And it's about, saying to them, you shouldn't be ashamed. Your situation is not your fault. Mostly it's the government cuts and, things like that are forcing people into food poverty.

[00:04:13] It's nice to be able to advise people and you just see how relaxed they are when you walk in. To go from really tense and really nervous to leaving, really relaxed and little bit more positive than before.

[00:04:29] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: It sounds like that's such a useful service. Living in Wythenshawe as I do, I often see posts of people asking for help on Facebook. And you're right, this can feel like, oh, can't I look after food? But actually these people have suffered homelessness or like you said, fuel poverty or other reasons.

[00:04:51] And sometimes we have to remember that this could happen to anyone as well. Sometimes these are just bad luck that could happen to anyone. So, really giving a helping hand is such a good idea.

Challenges and Obstacles

[00:05:03] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Tell us some of the obstacles you have to overcome in your work. You talked about people themselves having perhaps a bit of a stigma or a concern that they are asking for help. What are the other things that you've had to overcome?

[00:05:19] Zoe Marlow: Other people can be very judgmental. And that's very difficult to get people to understand. I have a lot of people saying to me, oh, why are you just giving people food? That's not helping them. And you are. You're giving them that little bit of independence because they're going home with it. It takes a lot for somebody to just walk in a building and say, please, can I have food? And I always say, you should be proud of yourself because you've done that. You have provided for yourself. That's an obstacle.

[00:05:47] And obviously donations. If the hub where we get the food from isn't getting the right donations, then we are unable to help as much as we want. So that can involve, maybe we don't get toiletries that week, we don't get toothpaste. And that's quite difficult because we want to give people everything that they have the right to, but if we don't have the donations or anything like that, it can be quite difficult. That can be an obstacle.

[00:06:18] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: And when you mentioned the hub, what do you mean by the hub?

[00:06:22] Zoe Marlow: Wythenshawe centre, there is the food bank hub where all the food gets donated or any food that's donated, they pick up, and then they take to the hub. And that's where it gets sorted and weighed so that we know what we get in.

[00:06:38] And then we do a list on our end and say, we need X amount of sugar or milk and things, and then they bring it to us. We have baskets in supermarkets where you can just donate tins or whatever you want to donate. And then that comes to us.

[00:06:56] And it's such a difficult time for everybody right now, not a lot of people can afford to donate. So that affects us in a way. The Trussell Trust will help us a little bit financially, but most of what we get is donations which at the moment is quite difficult. Not everybody can afford even a spare tin of beans or tea bags, so that's quite difficult.

[00:07:25] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Thank you for explaining that.

Community Support and Services

[00:07:27] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: When you think about the communities that have benefited the most from your work, are there any particular communities within that you support?

[00:07:36] Zoe Marlow: We support all of the community. There's no bias. You do have to have a food bank voucher, which you can get from job centres, schools, Citizens Advice. There’re places where you can get the vouchers. I could be serving a homeless person and then right after them could be a mum with three children. And then right after that could be somebody who's not earned enough in their pay check that week for food.

[00:08:06] It's a whole demographic. It is very difficult to just pin that one part of the community down. I'd like to think that we support all of the community and, it's all different races, gender, LGBTQ+. It doesn't matter if you need, we are there to support you with that food.

[00:08:27] But also at the Dandelion, we have a Citizens Advice worker that comes on a Wednesday. So we ask at the food bank, is there anything else that you need support with? And then we can send them to the Citizens Advice.

[00:08:46] We also have the law centre there as well. That's appointments based on a Monday. So we try and get as much support in the building as we can. Because poverty, housing, health, it's all so we try and support that person as best we can with everything.

[00:09:07] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: That's so useful and great to know that you have these support services also within the Dandelion Community.

[00:09:13] When you think about the impact that you made so far, what would you say is the impact of the Dandelion Food Bank?

[00:09:21] Zoe Marlow: I think we've helped people become a little bit more confident in coming for food parcels. It's great what we do because I see people the first time they come. They could have a mental health problem and it's so hard for them to just walk through those doors.

[00:09:40] You can see how they're feeling and now we get people who just walk through the door and they're just happy to see you. So I'd like to think that we've helped people come into their community a little bit more and to feel less negative about needing support.

[00:10:00] Because a lot of people think, oh, if I need support, that means I'm this and this kind of person. It is a friendship, like a family, at the community where we are. And people feel so much more relaxed to get the food. Because I never want to feel like an obstacle in someone's way of getting food.

[00:10:19] I like to be the bridge to someone getting the food. but sometimes it is not just what you are giving them in a carrier bag, it's how you treat them. And how they feel when they're around you and the other volunteers.

[00:10:36] So I feel like, I have some wonderful volunteers as well who actually care about what they're doing, and that's very important. You are not just volunteering to make yourself feel good. You are volunteering because you care. And that's what we have at the Dandelion. Everybody cares. I'd like to feel that we just let people feel that little bit cared for.

[00:11:01] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I like that very much because you're right, food is important and it's like one of those essential things that we need to survive. But then treating people with that respect and that dignity, making them feel welcomed and like you said, showing that you care. Especially people who may have mental health or homelessness, they may feel almost unloved at sometimes. So, showing them a little bit of that human connection. That does sound very powerful.

Dandelion Community Savers and Africa Trip

[00:11:30] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Do you want to also talk about Dandelion Community Savers, and how you got inspired by your trip to Africa?

[00:11:37] Zoe Marlow: The Dandelion Community Savers was quite new to me. It's a savings group and we invite people in from the community to come and save. There's no opening fee. You can save 50 pence a time. And it encourages people that you can be in charge of your money, no matter your circumstance.

[00:12:00] Some people on benefits may be like, oh, I can't save, I can't afford to save money. Even if it's as little as a pound a week, and it grows and grows. And it's about helping people become more self-sustainable. It brings a wonderful community together.

[00:12:18] Like all the members, the savers, they're all amazing people. And we take them on days out and we do lots of different things with them. We have meals and it is just wonderful to bring these people together.

[00:12:34] And they're all different people. We have pensioners, we have young people. It's great to teach young generation how to save. And then through that's where I met Class, which is how I got to go to Africa. And Class is like the parent group of the savers, and which is where we get a lot of our funding through and things like that.

[00:13:01] So I was offered a trip to Africa. Because in Nairobi, they have the same savers group. So it was eye-opening to see how this community get together because we went into the actual slum village. And this community save their money and for different reason, they could save, for the children's uniform or rent different things like that.

[00:13:29] And one of the wonderful ladies that I met because I was a white person coming in and telling them, and they said that, they said. You don't know poverty, so why are you here?

[00:13:41] And then I was quite personal with my life and I said, I was in my house, which I'm very lucky to have a home. I had no electric, no gas, no food. My poverty is so different from yours, but we both have poverty I said. And that's happening a lot in my country where people do have a home, they can't afford to sustain it.

[00:14:05] The money goes on that home and keeping that home above their head. For anything else. And I felt we bonded through that because, we both were trying to fight poverty. It was a different poverty, but it was still poverty in the long run.

[00:14:23] And it was just inspiring to meet strong women that were oppressed all the time and was constantly, people were trying to just keep them where they should be. And they would march, and they had guns put in the face because they were fighting and marching for what they in.

[00:14:44] And these women didn't even let the gun in the face scare them. They just carried on. And it was wonderful to see the things that they have built. The future that they have provided for their children.

[00:14:56] And, as soon as I got off the plane to come home, I was like what can we do? Why aren't we doing what they're doing? When it comes to data mapping, they would go around to every address on the slums, and they would make sure that they knew who was there. How many people were there and what help that person would need so that if anything ever did happen, the community rallied around for that person.

[00:15:27] And that kind of inspired us to get on the housing. We're fighting for more social housing for, Wythenshawe. Because everybody deserves a home. Everybody deserves dignity and everybody deserves food and good health.

[00:15:44] And we are supposed to be richer than Africa, but it feels like our community spirit has been lost. And they have community spirit in abundance, and that's how they get things done.

[00:15:58] And I thoroughly believe it, a community can come together and can improve everybody's life around them. If we all got that little bit of a belief in ourselves and in each other. Wythenshawe could be a much, it's a wonderful place anyway, but it could be much more wonderful.

[00:16:19] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I can see that. I would say yes in general; people are extremely nice and kind. And you can see the kind of support even on the Facebook group. But you're right, there will be pockets where more can be done. Or hard to reach or groups that are not on Facebook or digital. So how are you reaching them as well?

Misunderstandings and Myths

[00:16:38] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: When you think about misunderstanding and is there something people often misunderstand? We've talked a little bit about, the stigma of, being homeless or facing some form of poverty . Are there other things that you found are misunderstood?

[00:16:54] Like for me, a food bank, I guess I understood a food bank to be both emergency sources, but also a regular source of food. Like when I've been to, Mustard Tree, they have a grocery store web, so people from who are homeless can come and pick up weekly provisions. Is there anything that you'd like to myth bust for us?

[00:17:17] Zoe Marlow: There is grocery, there is community groceries around Wythenshawe. And I think they're very useful at helping people go in and make choices what food they want. But a lot of it you have to sign up with five pounds and then, you have to pay a certain amount which may work. But for me, I don't think it's fair to everybody because maybe some people could afford that five pound joining fee, but not everybody can.

[00:17:47] I remember my friends would go, but I couldn't afford the five-pound joining fee as well as the seven pounds to buy the groceries. That's why Fare Shop is wonderful because they get the food. It can be donated, or they'll get it cheaper. And then they will sell items for 20 pence. And that's what I can support because people, you could have a pound in your pocket and instead of going hungry, you could go in the Fare Shop and you could get like five items for a pound.

[00:18:23] And to me that's a much fairer system in this economy. Helps people feel like they're providing for themself because not everybody wants to go to a food bank and get a handout as they call it. I don't think it's a handout. It's what everyone deserves.

[00:18:40] Because everybody has a human right to food and I don't feel there should be that many obstacles to that food. And in this country, we have so much food waste. So Fare Shop actually helped to reduce food waste as well as help people provide for the self.

[00:19:03] And I think if the community groceries were a little bit cheaper. For me, I'd be more supportive of them. But I just don't feel that this economy, people can afford to use the community groceries as much. And that's why people have to get food vouchers.

[00:19:22] And then they come to us, we could have a single person voucher, or we could have a family of eight. And if you are a family of eight, going to a community grocer where you are only allowed two items, it's not sustainable. Whereas if a family of eight come to the food bank, then they get the right amount of food for their family. So I think the grocer in the food bank they're similar, but they're very different to me.

[00:19:52] I love the food bank because we are helping people. There's no questions asked. You come in, we ask if you want tea or coffee, if you've got children, then you get your food.

[00:20:03] Whereas in some cases that I've heard of in community groceries, they want to know, are you religious? Different things like that. So much who try and put religion onto you and offer to redeem you for you to get that food. And religion and food are two different things. Even though we are in a church building, the religion and the community are very separate.

[00:20:28] A lot of people feel a lot better because they're walking into a church. And it feels peaceful. You do feel peace when you walk in. But that's where the religion ends when it comes to the food bank. And we do community meals as well where we all eat together on a Wednesday and Sunday.

[00:20:49] Everyone in the community, we just sit down, and we just eat together. Food is, to me, it's a language just breaking bread with someone, just eating a small meal with someone; it creates friendships. And it strengthens the community and people just come back because they feel welcome.

[00:21:09] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Now this community meals do sound wonderful and thank you for educating me. I don't know some of these things, so it's good for me and hopefully listeners from around the world will also learn more about this.

[00:21:22] And I do agree food, shelter. These are, basic human rights that everybody should have. And it's amazing to hear about the work that the ladies in Africa are doing as well as how that inspired you.

[00:21:38] What's your top tip for people looking to make an impact in their communities? So let's say somebody hears your story, Zoe, and they want to now do something in another part of the world or another part of the UK. How should they get started?

[00:21:51] Zoe Marlow: Just kindness to start with. Just kindness. Even if it's your next door neighbour or your friends. If you see your friends struggling, walk into your local community centre and ask if they'd like someone to volunteer for the day. Maybe find a food bank, donate a tin of beans.

[00:22:13] Even if you can't commit yourself to a lot, there is always small little gestures that you can do. Look around the community and there's whatever your interest could be there. There's gardening clubs, there's cooking, there's helping the aged as well.

[00:22:32] There's so many wonderful organisations in Wythenshawe and around the world that you can help with. And if there isn't an organisation, maybe get a community together and build one. If you see something that isn't there, maybe put it in place. If you can't do that, just small gestures of kindness can go a long way.

[00:22:54] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I love that about kindness. It's such an important thing because, it doesn't cost you much to do something kind or just to offer a bit of a welcoming message or gesture to people.

[00:23:08] An opportunity for you to talk about anything I haven't asked you about. I know you're also associated with quite a few different things in Wythenshawe.

Community Voice and Development

[00:23:15] Zoe Marlow: We've also created Wythenshawe Central Network. And in light of the new development that will be happening in, Wythenshawe, we wanted to create somewhere where the community's voice can be heard. So that people can't just come into our community and say, this is what you are having and you will be happy with.

[00:23:36] We've created a network so that the community can meet with the developers. Any information that we get for them so they can say to the developers, look, we don't want this. Had a meeting not long ago with them and they were saying different things. And I said, okay, so if someone who gets 200 pound a month wants to come to Civic Centre in five years, can I afford a cup of coffee? And they didn't have the answer. What we need to do, we need to get together as a community, as a voice keep them on the toes.

[00:24:13] But we can't just do it with a small group. It has to be the larger community. So we were actually doing a walkabout, Wythenshawe Central network. And we are meeting in Civic Centre and then we're all gonna walk around where the new development will be. Just so the community can have a voice.

[00:24:39] Every month, we are doing workshops and people are more than welcome to come. And the developers are going to be opening one of the shops on Civic so that people pop in and ask their questions.

[00:24:52] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: A drop-in centre. That's a great idea and more power to all of you.

Signature Questions 

[00:24:58] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I'm now going to move us to the signature questions I ask all my guests. And the first one is, what makes Manchester a unique place for social impact work?

[00:25:07] Zoe Marlow: Oh, it's the people. Definitely the people. Having been to other places in the world and then you come back to Manchester, it's the people are so resilient. You could drop them down and they'll get back up. And they're easy to help. You want to help the people in Manchester, think it's just the spirit, I think. But it's definitely the people are massive part of Manchester.

[00:25:36] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I like that very much about the spirit and the resilience. Like you said, people have been through a lot, but they find a way and that's really important.

[00:25:46] If you could have dinner with any historical figure in Manchester, who would it be with and why?

[00:25:52] Zoe Marlow: It would be Emmeline Pankhurst, and it would just to be able to thank her and show her what she has done. As being a Manchester woman and having men tell me I can't do things my whole life, she inspired me because her and her daughters had men telling them they could and couldn't do things, and she carried on. She just carried on and she believed in what she believed in, and she finally got it. And it'd be really nice to show her what she believed in has actually come true. That would be wonderful.

[00:26:32] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: She is very popular on the podcast. But yes, that would be quite lovely. And like you said, it's almost like she's left a legacy for us that people like yourself are able to carry on.

[00:26:43] If you were to create a social impact superhero, what powers would they have and what cause would they fight for?

[00:26:51] Zoe Marlow: Oh, wow. I think the powers would be to give people hope and to let people know there is hope, that would be a superpower. It's hard to pinpoint whether it would be a food bank or, because there's so many things needed. But I just think, she would be a pillar of hope. And she would just help strengthen communities to do what they already do.

[00:27:18] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I like that very much about being a pillar of hope. Maybe in my mind, I'm thinking of Lady Liberty, but I'm sure there's a Mancunian element we could come up with. I love to picture these superheroes, whatever they look like.

[00:27:33] What's the most important life lesson you've ever learned?

[00:27:37] Zoe Marlow: Don't listen to people when they tell you, you can't do anything. If you believe you can, just do it. And if anyone tells you not to, just do it. Many people has told me I can't do what I've already done. Believe in yourself. And never believe, you can't do it.

[00:27:56] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I think this is so important, that self-belief, because sometimes things can get hard or more people say no, than say yes. So if you keep going, you need to rely a lot on yourself. So really powerful. Thank you for sharing that.

[00:28:12] How can interested people reach out to you and learn more? Where can they find Dandelion Food Bank. And where can they find you online as well?

[00:28:21] Zoe Marlow: The Dandelion food bank is actually in the Dandelion centre. And we are open on a Monday and a Wednesday, 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM. And we have a drop in where you can come and just grab a cup of coffee. You can ask me or the building coordinator for anything that you may need.

[00:28:46] Or, how could we point you into a direction where you can be helped. We also have community food. So, we get donation of bread, so we've always got bread and we have free community food that's out as well.

[00:29:00] And Wednesday and Sunday from 1230 we have a community meal, which is free. It is on a Sunday, it's a three-course meal. And it's great to just sit down and eat with fellow community members. And you can find us on Facebook under the Dandelion Community Hub, I think it is and find out some of the wonderful things that we have there. It's amazing.

[00:29:25] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Thank you so much for including that, and I'll make sure that it's in the show notes.

[00:29:30] And to end the podcast, is there a funny or a heartwarming story you'd like to share with listeners? Maybe something from your Africa trip?

[00:29:38] Zoe Marlow: I think with my Africa trip; it was funny because the women that were there were not very different from the Mancunian women. We pull our sleeves up and we just keep going.

[00:29:50] One of the women said what we do with our men is we just let them go out and then they can do what they're doing. And then, we get on with the real work because women can do real work, whereas men just get told to shut up and sit down. And that stayed with me.

[00:30:05] It was like not as much to tell the men to shut up and sit down. But it was just great that. I was brought up by women. And, I've never met anyone so courageous as someone wearing a skirt, they're just amazing. And they just keep going. and they had lots of funny stories as well.

[00:30:24] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: That does sound really nice. And you're right. Not to have any kind of bias, but there is definitely, sometimes you need some people in the real world to do the real work rather than the talking. So often this could be from a female persuasion or identifying as female persuasion.

[00:30:44] I've seen this myself. I've volunteered in Africa in three countries and you could really see the women just getting on with things. And men were nice too, but you could see that sometimes, they just knew how to get out of the way.

[00:30:58] Thank you so much, Zoe. This has been a real pleasure. I'll be in touch with you very soon about the podcast but just want to say a big thank you for sharing your journey with me today.

[00:31:08] Zoe Marlow: Thank you and maybe one day, you could come to the Dandelion Community.

[00:31:12] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: That would be great.

Outro

[00:31:14] Zoe, I really enjoyed learning about addressing food poverty in the community today.

[00:31:20] Dear listener, thank you so much for listening to the 10th episode of the Meet the Mancunian podcast, season 10. I hope today's episode has inspired you to make positive change wherever you live. Tune in every Tuesday for a new episode or log on to meet the man.co.uk to listen to all the episodes and learn more about my podcasting story.

[00:31:44] Next week on Tuesday 29th April 2025, I speak to Chris Marsh about community organisations in the penultimate episode of the season.

[00:31:56] It's wonderful to hear from you, dear listeners, you can share your story or send me a message on my website www.meetthemancunian.co.uk or on social media @MeettheMancunian on Instagram, Facebook, and Blue Sky, and @MeetttheMancunianPodcast on YouTube.

[00:32:15] Thank you to my wonderful community of listeners. Remember your voice, your story, and your actions matter. Share this episode with someone who needs to hear it, and let's inspire even more positive change.

[00:32:27] To a better kinder world, and until next time, let's continue making Manchester and beyond a place of greater impact, compassion, and action.