A RETIRED teacher behind a charity that has supplied around 6,000 Christmas hampers to struggling families says she has witnessed “horrendous” examples of poverty, which she believes is at a 30-year high in the region.

Pat McBride founded the Cause hamper campaign in the 1980s after hearing the plight of a young, employed mother who could not provide for her children over the festive period.

Since the launch of the charity, based in Middlesbrough, demand for supplies has mushroomed from 25 hampers collected in its first year from pupils and staff at Newland School, where Ms McBride taught French, to more than 500 collected last December.

Ahead of the 30th anniversary of the Cause campaign, Ms McBride, of Marton, said: “Without a doubt, the problems are the worst I’ve ever known.

“It can be quite upsetting work, although it’s also heartening to think we can respond and help.

“People are incredibly generous, but in a way it’s putting a sticking plaster on the problems because they go so much deeper.

“It’s not up to me to get involved with the politics, the way I see our role is to respond to where the need is greatest.

“But there have been huge reductions in funding and benefits sanctions and people being moved from one benefit to another also creates real hardship.”

The majority of hampers are collected annually from the region’s primary and secondary schools and colleges to support the organisation that has provided beds for 14 families in the last three months.

Ms McBride, who was last year presented with a Teesside Hero award by Middlesbrough and Teesside Philanthropic Foundation, added: “I’ve seen horrendous examples where a family has gone without a hot meal for three months because they couldn’t afford a new oven.

“We’ve helped a young man who works full-time on the minimum wage.

“At the end of the month, after paying his rent, council tax and bills, he hasn’t got any money left for food.

“Another dad, secured a job and came off benefits, but there was then a long interim period where they had no money and they were desperate for nappies for their baby and school uniform for their children.”

The former French teacher added: “We can’t solve every single problem, but we can certainly help.

“Donations continue to be very generous and where there is a need, there’s always a response.”