Winter appeal: £25 keeps a family warm for a week

Since 1994 · Registered charity

No one should face winter alone.

We run food banks, fix boilers and answer 40,000 calls a year from people who have nowhere else to turn.

Winter appeal

£68,420 raised of £100,000

1,912 people have given · 18 days left

Gifts are matched until 31 January.

How we help

Practical help, the same week.

Every service is open to anyone who needs it, no referral needed.

Food banks

Twelve food banks across the region, open six days a week.

38,000 parcels last year

Warm homes

We repair boilers and fit insulation for families on low incomes.

1,240 homes kept warm

Advice line

Debt, housing and benefits advice on 0800 000 000.

40,000 calls answered

Benefits checker

Find out in ten minutes what support you can claim.

£2.1m claimed last year

Our year so far

Every pound, put to work.

Figures from January to October 2026, against this year’s targets.

food parcels given

84% of our 45,000 target

homes kept warm

62% of our 2,000 target

advice calls answered

91% of our 44,000 target

Who we are

A small team and a big crowd of volunteers.

Grace Eze

Chief executive

With Common Ground since 2012

Owen Wright

Head of food banks

Volunteer since 2016, staff since 2019

Nadia Patel

Advice line manager

With Common Ground since 2018

1,900 volunteers

sort parcels, drive vans and answer the phone every week.

Stories

Every gift becomes someone’s winter.

Real moments from the people who give, help and are helped. Names changed where asked.

Volunteer

“Saturday mornings at the food bank are the best two hours of my week.”

Paul Mensah

Volunteer, Bristol

Family helped

“The boiler was fixed in two days. My kids slept warm for the first time that month.”

Sam

Parent, Swindon

Monthly donor

“Twenty-five pounds a month, and every winter I see exactly where it went.”

Rachel Owen

Donor since 2018

Give

What your gift does this winter.

Choose an amount, or give monthly and help us plan ahead.

£10

A food parcel for one person for three days.

£25

Keeps a family warm for a week.

£50

A boiler safety check and small repair.

£100

Ten calls answered on our advice line.

Monthly gifts are matched until 31 January · Registered charity no. 0000000 (sample)

Questions

How giving, and getting help, works.

Where does my donation go?

Ninety pence of every pound goes straight to food banks, warm homes and the advice line. The rest keeps the lights on.

Can I give monthly?

Yes. Monthly gifts help us plan for winter, and you can change or stop them at any time.

Who can use the food banks?

Anyone who is struggling. A referral helps, but nobody is turned away on their first visit.

How do I volunteer?

Choose a centre and a time on our volunteer page. Shifts are two to three hours.

Can my company support you?

Yes. Payroll giving, matched donations and team volunteering days are all welcome.

Need help today?

Our advice line is open every day from 8am to 8pm. Calls are confidential and cost nothing from a mobile.

0800 000 000

£25 keeps a family warm for a week.

Gifts are matched until 31 January, so yours goes twice as far.

However you need us, we are here.

Get help

Call the advice line on 0800 000 000, every day from 8am to 8pm.

Get involved

Volunteer for two hours a week at a centre near you.

Volunteer with us

£25 keeps a family warm for a week.

Every pound goes further this winter: gifts are matched until 31 January.

Common Ground

Food banks, warm homes and an advice line for anyone who needs them, since 1994.

Get help

Get involved

About us

Registered charity no. 0000000 (sample)