Hungry children are 'ripping the bags open to get at the food', says Burnley pastor

Pastor Mick Fleming delivering food to a home in Burnley. (Photo: BBC News)

A pastor in Burnley distributing food to the local community has spoken of "unprecedented and upsetting" levels of need after nearly a year of coronavirus.

Mick Fleming, of Church on the Street, wept as he told the BBC that in some homes he has visited, hungry children have been "ripping the bags open to get at the food".

"It's not all right, that. That's not all right," he said. 

Fleming has been distributing hot meals for poor members of the local community throughout the pandemic. He echoed what many church leaders have been saying - that the crisis is hitting the poorest the hardest. 

"Politicians say it was a leveller, this coronavirus; it's a lie because if you're poor you've got no chance," he said.

The pastor said that some of the people who turn up to the food distribution at night have jobs but still cannot make ends meet. 

"The need's massive, absolutely colossal," he said. 

"The level of need here in Burnley I think is unprecedented and it's upsetting," he added. 

News
What a recent doctor's visit taught me about modern Britain
What a recent doctor's visit taught me about modern Britain

Attention is one of the purest forms of love but so many people are going unnoticed, writes J John.

The state of Christianity and the medieval Church in England before the Reformation
The state of Christianity and the medieval Church in England before the Reformation

As with much late-medieval faith, things were complex and there clearly was a hunger for a relationship with Christ, even if sometimes expressed in ways that would be rejected by later Reformers.

Former Sri Lankan intelligence chief arrested over Easter bombings that killed 279
Former Sri Lankan intelligence chief arrested over Easter bombings that killed 279

The 2019 bombings were the worst Islamist terror attack in Sri Lanka's modern history.

Nigeria rejects claims it paid ransom and released Islamists to secure kidnapped children
Nigeria rejects claims it paid ransom and released Islamists to secure kidnapped children

A report by AFP includes claims that Nigeria paid as much as $7 million and released two Boko Haram commanders in exchange for the release of children and staff kidnapped from a Catholic school.