VISITS to food banks have risen by 470 per cent in the region in the last year, it has been reported.

The Trussell Trust, a Christian charity which runs 13 food banks in the North-East and Cumbria, has recorded a 170 per cent increase nationally.

However figures obtained by the BBC appear to show a far higher increase in the region.

A spokeswoman for The Trussell Trust said the North-East figures had not be compiled by the charity. However she explained when new food banks, like the one in Billingham, near Stockton, open it can make the percentage increase far higher. Public awareness of food banks has increased since they were advertised in job centres.

She said: “That said, there’s still a real increase in need which, given the changes in welfare benefits, we expect will only get higher in the coming year.”

Nigel Perrot, who manages a food bank in Middlesbrough, said about 35 to 40 people were using the food bank earlier in the year, but that has now risen to up to 100 people. “It’s a sad indictment as to where we are today,” he said.