Join in the ‘Big Picnic for Hope’ on Friday 8 May by having a picnic at home to honour heroes past and present and help support the nation’s foodbanks.

Many of us would have been commemorating the 75th anniversary of VE Day on 8 May. Families and friends would have been gathering for street parties and celebrations around the UK, which unfortunately is no longer possible. Cathedrals around the country would have been hosting major events to mark this anniversary too. Instead, they are joining forces to ask people around the UK to picnic at home and at the same time support people struggling to put food on the table due to COVID-19.

The Big Picnic For Hope aims to raise £5000 for the Trussell Trust, a charity which supports a nationwide network of food banks and provides emergency food and support to people locked in poverty. With a rise in the number of people who are using foodbanks nationally, and the future uncertain as to how many people will have to adjust to more difficult living conditions around the country, the Big Picnic for Hope aims to ask those who can to donate towards providing another individual or family having food in their house today.

The Big Picnic for Hope also celebrates the heroes of our new ‘homefront’: those risking their lives, the NHS, carers, delivery personnel, workers across food stores and public transport, and the remarkable collective effort of the nation to stay home and play our own individual part in helping to see this through.

Thank you for supporting the vital work of the Trussell Trust – help us spread the word by sharing your picnic on social media with the hashtags #bigpicnicforhope and #feed5000