AN ACCOUNTANCY firm has given back to the community this Christmas with a large donation to foodbanks across Bury and East Lancashire.

Waterfold Business Park based PM+M has donated a total of £3000 in an effort to help some of the people most in need during the festive period.

The company has given to Ramsbottom Pantry, Blackburn Foodbank, Burnley FC Community Kitchen and Maundy Relief in Accrington.

PM+M managing partner Jane Parry said: "The last couple of years have been incredibly hard and people from all walks of life have been affected by Covid in many different ways.

"The notion that foodbanks are only used by the homeless is a myth.

"More and more working people are now accessing their services as the cost of living continues to rise.

"Other reasons cited include redundancy, sickness, delays over receiving benefits, domestic violence, family breakdown, reduction in Universal Credits, debt, and additional fuel costs in wintertime."

The pandemic has exacerbated many of these issues, with foodbank usage having risen sharply across the UK since the start of the pandemic which Ms Parry and her colleagues are acutely aware of.

As such they are aiming to extend their generosity beyond the festive period.

She said: "We hope this donation helps these vital organisations continue their fantastic work and that it will make a difference to their clients this Christmas.

"However, it isn’t only at Christmas time that they need our help, for that reason we plan to start a monthly food collection for Blackburn Foodbank by encouraging our team to donate certain food items each month throughout the whole of 2022."

Charities across the region have been grateful for what they have received so far.

Blackburn Foodbank organiser Gill Fourie said: "We don’t think anyone in our community should face going hungry, we are very grateful for the donation from PM+M, this will help those in desperate need in our borough immensely."

PM+M are also running their Christmas present appeal again this year, which the firm says aims to help vulnerable families and children in the area who are unlikely to receive gifts otherwise.

To find out more, visit PM+M's website.