By Abby Cooper, Head of People and Culture
This week’s visit to Watford Food Bank was a truly eye-opening and emotional experience. Miloni Tanna, Sigma’s Administrative Manager, brought a group of us together – our CEO Hatul Shah, our Business Development Director Paras Shah, Head of Finance Chirag Davda, Head of Sales Dipesh Vaja, Miloni, and myself.
The Watford Food Bank serves a large area in and around Watford, providing approximately 650 food parcels per month, with referrals from frontline care professionals. They receive donations of non-perishable goods from various sources, and as a business Sigma contributes weekly food products totalling £100.
However, the charity also has to spend around £5,000-£8,000 per month to make sure they have enough food for everyone who needs it. So even though they receive food donations, they also rely on monetary donations to be able to cover the costs of buying additional food. It’s hard to believe that there is no government support for this charity run by the Trussell Trust.
On arrival, we were given an insightful talk by Andrew Tranter, one of the food bank’s Trustees. His words were deeply moving as he shared stories of individuals who rely on the food bank. One account was of a single mother struggling to cope after being made redundant, doing her best to manage alone. Another story featured a woman who left a full-time role to work at a Watford charity, only to find herself unable to make ends meet, forcing her to seek help from the food bank.
It was humbling and emotional to hear these real-life struggles, and I was moved to tears thinking about people desperate to feed themselves and their children. The growing number of people needing this service is a stark reminder of how much we often take for granted.
We were then left in the capable hands of Jane Halvin, the depot manager who is the only paid member of staff supported by volunteers. Our afternoon was spent packing food bags for individuals and families. We had a list of items that we had to pick depending on whether it was for one person or a family. The parcels are supposed to be enough food for 3 days. The items are basic but if there is enough additional stock available, then extras can be added. We were fortunate today, there were lots of additional treats, such as bagged sweets and crisps.
Dipesh and I worked together and we got into a good routine which was fun and even competitive at times. Hatul and Miloni partnered up to fill bags, while Paras was busy lifting boxes, making sure they were labelled and dated and then put into the lift to store, ready for collection. He then got involved in returned goods. It felt a little bit like the old days at Sigma!
The teamwork and energy made it an enjoyable afternoon and it was a reminder of how rewarding it can be to work together towards a shared goal. Anyone at Sigma can volunteer for two paid days per year, which we feel is an important part of our employee culture, and this visit not only highlighted the critical work of the Watford Food Bank, but also reinforced the impact we can have by giving our time and support to those in need.
