Balderton Methodist Church harvest food collection helps Newark Foodbank and Newark Emmaus Trust

A harvest food collection by a church received as many donations in one week as it normally would in a month.

The collection, organised by Balderton Methodist Church, asked people to donate food and other items, including toiletries.

The church had a collection table outside every day for a week in the run-up to its harvest festival service for people to leave items.

All the donations were divided between Newark Emmaus Trust, which helps young homeless people, and Newark Foodbank.

The minister, the Rev Peter Bates, said each charity had received 125kg of goods after the week-long collection.

“Normally that would be a month’s worth of donations,” he said.

He said the collection had inspired other acts of kindness, including donations of flowers from one congregation member to be distributed to people who were unwell.

“Gestures like that mean so much because people know others are thinking of them,” he said.