Tori Shows How Bread And Butter Builds Confidence Through Volunteering

A cheap weekly shop can stretch your budget, but it can also change your life. We sit down with Tori, a member and volunteer at the Bread and Butter Thing hub in the North East, to talk about what it really looks like when surplus food reaches families who are stretched to the limit, and what happens when a warm welcome turns into belonging. 

Tori shares the pressure of raising a disabled daughter while waiting for Universal Credit and Disability Living Allowance, and why the hardest part is often the “life admin”: complicated questions, gathering evidence, long waits, and the constant fear of getting one detail wrong. We also dig into the wider picture, from EHCP challenges to the lack of reliable, local wraparound support that helps people access the benefits and services they’re entitled to. If you’ve searched for affordable food schemes, UK food poverty support, or help with benefits forms, her story brings those keywords to life in a very real way. 

We also talk about place and people: council housing, coastal communities near Hartlepool, neighbours who look out for each other, and the aftershocks of Covid and bereavement. Tori describes moving from anxiety and keeping herself to herself to volunteering at the hub, carrying bags to cars, helping on the van, and even calling bingo at the community café. It’s a reminder that surplus food redistribution is important, but community is what helps people rebuild confidence. 

If you enjoy the conversation, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave us a review so more people can find the podcast. What part of Tori’s journey do you relate to most?