Foodbanks have been a major point of discussion in the media over the past few years. They have challenged the negative press and managed to showcase the good work that they really do. One of the examples was a documentary that showed on television late 2015 about food banks in Dundee. There are recurring negative responses to food banks that I have been hearing over and over again; I wanted to challenge them to emphasise why overlooking things ‘outwith’ your responsibility, rarely results in the greater good.
I think it is important to note that there are always people who take advantage of systems for their own personal gain. However, is this good enough a reason to stop giving help to those who need it? In my opinion, helping those in need greatly outweighs stopping those who take advantage get what they want. 
‘Food banks encourage people not to work’ is one of the main comments that surface when the subject is discussed. However, a person has to be assessed before they are given a token to collect food and it would be impossible to live on the limited amount of tokens allowed in a 6 month period. The volunteers package up boxes for single people, couples of families only available because of the overwhelming generosity of local people . 
The truth seems to be that people get angry, as expected, that some people might be abusing the system. However, although it may not be obvious, there are people who really need these emergency food parcels and those are the people that the food banks are targeting. 
Another I argument I hear is that ‘we shouldn’t need food banks and having them encourages the government to be lazy’. Although this is a valid argument, the truth is that we do need food banks. What the argument should be is that having food banks does not mean that the government can put these problems at a lower priority.
I chatted to the volunteers at the North Ayrshire food banks who were only too keen to get their points across. The food bank is run by all the volunteers who kindly donate their time to helping their community. 
Frances McGinley was asked why she thinks it’s important for young people to get involved. She said,  ‘for me, I think it's a harsh learning for our young people - to see so graphically that people are going hungry in 2016, humiliated and so desperate that they need to go and ask for food. Helping those who can't help themselves means they learn that their community knows it has a duty of care.’
 “Trussell Trust figures show over one million people needed help in 2015” said Eric Foo, “Following on from the awareness of the need, must come the action to help through donating food and/or time.” 
A lot of local young people have been getting involved already. Karen Willey says “The children we have seen were very concerned that some people didn't have enough money for food and clearly saw themselves as being able to assist in some way. It was wonderful to witness their compassion and enthusiasm.”
Giving a helping hand to those in your community who are in need goes along way. David Baillie says that “Community encompasses everyone locally so if we don't help each other then we don't have a community.” Following on from this Alex Nisbet sums up my point by saying that “standing by while people are in need is not an option”.