Food Bank Aid

What Food Bank Aid does

Food Bank Aid is a UK-registered charity (Charity Number 1194314) and company limited by guarantee (company number 13299257), founded by Naomi Russell in April 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic and formally registered in 2021. It operates a centralised donation and distribution hub at 2b Chaplin Square, Great North Leisure Park, Finchley N12, supported by Regal London, that purchases and distributes food, toiletries and household goods to 33 partner food banks across eight North London boroughs (Barnet, Brent, Camden, Enfield, Haringey, Harrow, Islington) and Hertfordshire — reaching approximately 20,000 people including 5,000 children each week. Its core technology is a bespoke weekly "option sheet" ordering system through which partner food banks submit specific shopping lists that are fulfilled by a combination of in-kind donations (collected from 50+ drop-off points and 80+ schools) and items procured against donations.

The business model is non-commercial: revenue is generated entirely through charitable giving streams, including one-off and recurring monetary donations (with Gift Aid uplift from £1 to £1.25), a virtual shop where donors purchase items on behalf of food banks at tiered price points (£1.50–£100), corporate partnerships covering CSR volunteering, matched giving, sponsorship and pro-bono services, seasonal fundraising campaigns (notably "School's Out, Food's Out" and the annual Fill the Gap crowdfunding campaign), and in-kind donations of physical goods. Pricing for charity recipients is zero; all donor purchases are effectively donations supporting operations. The organisation is volunteer-led, with approximately 9 full-time staff and a 400+ volunteer base, and is governed by a Board of Trustees chaired by Chris Goodgame with CEO Alyson Walsh (joined 2024, ex-FareShare) leading operations.

In 2025, Food Bank Aid joined a collaborative covenant with six other UK food redistribution charities (including Felix, The Bread and Butter Thing and City Harvest) to reduce duplication and share logistics and data, and its annual Fill the Gap campaign exceeded £1 million. Sub-brands include the School's Out, Food's Out summer hunger campaign, the Share the Load hygiene poverty campaign, and the Pier to Pier 26-mile sponsored walk.

Name

Food Bank Aid

Legal name

Food Bank Aid

Website

https://foodbankaid.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Food Bank Aid is a UK registered charity operating a central donation and distribution hub that purchases and delivers food, toiletries and household goods to 33 partner food banks across North London and Hertfordshire, reaching approximately 20,000 people including 5,000 children each week through a volunteer-led, donation-funded model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Monetary Donations: One-off and recurring financial donations from individuals via the website, bank transfer (BACS), JustGiving, and cheque. The charity can claim Gift Aid on UK taxpayer donations, boosting each £1 to £1.25. Donors can set up recurring donations through the Donate Online portal.
2. Virtual Shop (Goods Purchased on Behalf): Donors purchase essential food, toiletries and household items through the online virtual shop. Food Bank Aid uses the funds to procure and deliver those items to food banks. Items include bundles (e.g. £10 weekly meals for a child), individual products (tinned food, toiletries, nappies) and hygiene bundles. This is the primary mechanism for purchasing items that are rarely donated.
3. Corporate Partnerships & Sponsorship: Long-term corporate partnerships with businesses aligned to CSR, ESG and employee engagement goals. Includes corporate volunteering days, company-wide fundraising campaigns, matched giving programmes, seasonal giving initiatives, and sponsorship. Pro-bono services in data management, research, marketing, design, legal support and campaign planning.
4. In-Kind Food & Goods Donations: Physical donations of food, toiletries and household goods collected from schools (over 80 schools), corporate partners, community organisations, and 50+ drop-off points. These goods are sorted and distributed directly to food banks without monetary transaction.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Food Bank Aid operates a central donation and distribution hub that procures and delivers essential food, toiletries, and household goods to a network of 33 partner food banks across North London and Hertfordshire. The charity raises funds through individual donations, a virtual shop, corporate partnerships, and in-kind contributions, then fulfils weekly bespoke shopping lists submitted by food bank managers. Approximately 20,000 people including 5,000 children are supported weekly through 400+ volunteers, 80+ school collections and 50+ drop-off points.

Product overview

Food Bank Aid operates a charity-focused product portfolio centered around its Virtual Shop platform, which enables donors to purchase essential food, toiletries, and household items for distribution to its network of 30+ food banks across North London and Hertfordshire. The core offering includes individual grocery and hygiene items alongside curated donation bundles at various price points (£10-£100). The Share the Load Campaign specifically addresses hygiene poverty with bundled cleaning and personal care products. The School's Out, Food's Out seasonal shop provides meal and hygiene bundles tailored for children during school holidays when free school meals are unavailable. A Free-From product line serves dietary requirements including gluten-free and dairy-free options. The organization functions as a central donation hub, collecting and distributing goods rather than offering a traditional SaaS platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• School's Out, Food's Out: A seasonal fundraising campaign to help fill the gap for families when school ends, providing food support to children during school holidays.
• Share the Load
• Pier to Pier Walk

Products and services

• Virtual Shop The flagship online platform at foodbankaid.org.uk/virtual-shop/ through which donors purchase specific food, toiletry and household items at set price points. Food Bank Aid uses the funds to procure those items and deliver them to its partner food banks. Items range from individual tinned and shelf-stable foods, beverages, breakfast items, snacks, condiments, personal care products, baby and infant products, household cleaning products, pet food and free-from dietary items, to curated donation bundles priced from £10 to £100.
• School's Out, Food's Out A seasonal programme with its own dedicated Virtual Shop offering curated holiday meal bundles (Weekly Snacks Bundle £10, Week of Meals Bundle £25, Week of Meals for 2 Bundle £50, Month of Meals Bundle £100) and individual breakfast, lunch, dinner and hygiene items specifically chosen for children and families during school holidays. The campaign helps fill the gap for families when free school meals stop during the summer.
• Share the Load Campaign A standalone campaign and curated product range that highlights hygiene poverty in the UK and provides bundles of laundry, personal hygiene and household cleaning products to partner food banks. Bundles are priced at £11 (basic laundry), £16 (basic laundry and personal hygiene) and £20 (full laundry, personal hygiene and household cleaning bundle), with individual hygiene items available from £1.50 to £6.50.
• Free-From Food Range A specialist product range addressing dietary requirements including gluten-free pasta, gluten-free cereal, dairy-free milk, tofu and jackfruit. Designed to support food bank clients with coeliac disease, allergies or other medical dietary needs where gluten-free shopping can cost up to 35% more than standard groceries.
• Corporate Volunteering and Partnership Programme A structured programme for businesses to engage their employees in food poverty relief, including corporate volunteering days at the North Finchley Hub (up to 10 participants) or larger on-site sessions, company-wide fundraising campaigns, matched giving, seasonal giving initiatives and sponsorship. Pro-bono services in data management, research, marketing, design, legal support and campaign planning are also accepted.
• Schools Collection Programme A schools engagement programme through which primary and secondary schools across North London run regular in-kind food collections for Food Bank Aid. The programme includes educational outreach on food poverty and supports the summer School's Out, Food's Out campaign. It now includes over 90 schools.

Quantifiable outcome

• ~20,000 people supported each week including ~5,000 children
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• FelixcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeven of the UK's leading food redistribution charities signed a new collaborative covenant to strengthen cooperation, reduce duplication, help more surplus food reach communities, and optimise through shared data and logistics. Felix joined Food Bank Aid, The Bread and Butter Thing, City Harvest and others in this initiative.
• The Bread and Butter ThingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeven of the UK's leading food redistribution charities signed a new collaborative covenant to strengthen cooperation, reduce duplication, help more surplus food reach communities, and optimise through shared data and logistics. The Bread and Butter Thing joined this initiative alongside Felix, City Harvest and others.
• City HarvestcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSeven of the UK's leading food redistribution charities signed a new collaborative covenant to strengthen cooperation, reduce duplication, help more surplus food reach communities, and optimise through shared data and logistics. City Harvest joined this initiative alongside Felix, The Bread and Butter Thing and others.
• CRS Law FirmminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner providing positive testimonial about working with Food Bank Aid, noting the dedicated, thoughtful team that aligns with their strategic priorities and provides open, proactive communication.
• Anglo Educational Services (Anglo-ES)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEducational services partner that enables American university students to intern with Food Bank Aid for six weeks during summer. Partnered for multiple years, bringing four interns in summer 2026.
• US Bushey ChesedminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJewish charitable organisation. Hosting for the Hungry initiative splits donations 70/30 between Food Bank Aid and US Bushey Chesed, supporting both UK and international hunger relief.
• IconminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate supporter of Food Bank Aid, listed among the Corporate Supporters section on the supporters page.
• Delite RadiominorGTM or Marketing PartnerRadio partner that supports Food Bank Aid. Click, Like and Earn programme where every 'like' on a specified video generates a percentage of revenue for Food Bank Aid.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Felix Project: London-based food redistribution charity rescuing surplus food and delivering to charities and schools. Direct peer in food redistribution; co-signatory with FBA on the 2025 UK food redistribution collaboration covenant.
• City Harvest: London food surplus redistribution charity collecting surplus from the food industry and distributing free meals. Direct peer in surplus food redistribution; also co-signatory on the 2025 UK food redistribution collaboration covenant.
• The Trussell Trust: Operates the UK's largest food bank network, supporting a nationwide coalition of food banks including those in North London. Directly comparable in mission (food poverty relief) and operating model (food bank support), with similar partner-network structure.
• Independent Food Aid Network (IFAN): Coalition of independent food banks across the UK. Directly comparable as a food bank network operator serving similar client populations; FBA's network of 33 partner food banks mirrors IFAN's grassroots federation model.
• FareShare: UK's largest food redistribution charity, redirecting surplus food to a network of community organisations. Direct peer in food surplus redistribution; Food Bank Aid's CEO Alyson Walsh joined FBA from FareShare where she grew income from £3m to £20m.
• The Bread and Butter Thing: UK charity providing low-cost surplus food via community fridge and hub model. Direct peer in surplus food redistribution; co-signatory on the 2025 UK food redistribution collaboration covenant alongside FBA.

Others

• Human Appeal: UK-based international humanitarian and development charity. Adjacent thematic peer in poverty relief; FBA trustee Ishraq Bhatti is also a consultant with Human Appeal on UK and international projects.
• Crisis UK: National charity for people experiencing homelessness. Overlapping client base (food-insecure and homeless Londoners) and complementary services, but focused on housing rather than food distribution.
• HANDS International: UK-based international humanitarian charity. Adjacent thematic peer in poverty and hunger relief; FBA trustee Ishraq Bhatti consults with HANDS on UK and international projects.

Regional players

• Sufra NW London: North West London food bank and community hub providing emergency food parcels and wraparound support. Comparable as a London food bank operator serving overlapping client demographics in an adjacent geography.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/food-bank-aid
• Instagraminstagram.com/foodbankaid
• Facebookfacebook.com/foodbankaid

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Food Bank Aid