How food projects are making a huge difference to families in Portsmouth this Christmas

Video report by ITV News Meridian's Derek Johnson

Charities and organisations in Portsmouth have been working to help make the holidays easier for those struggling to make ends meet.

At North End Pantry, people pay a small amount to be given a choice of food and other items.

Sammy Berrow, a mother of three, says Christmas can be a tough time for her and the family.

She said: "The kids eat me out of house and home, and we go for a lot of fruit and veg, so I tend to come in to stock up and get more because it's quite expensive. I just have to space everything out.''

The Rev Tracey Ansell said: "We offer all of the bakery, the fruit, the vegetables for free, and we also toiletries are also free. So if you have £4, you could be walking away with about £35 of food."

At the Portsmouth Foodbank, volunteers have been packing donations collected as part of an initiative called Reverse Advent Calendar, organised via the University of Portsmouth.

Hayley Wheeler, from the university, said: "Instead of taking something from a calendar every day, the idea is that you put something in and at the end of the collecting time you have nice little donations to give the charities. It means that people get something for Christmas that they would usually be able to afford."

About 120 hampers with food and household items are being made up for families to collect at local schools.

Sam Hanson, from Portsmouth Foodbank, said: "People are just finding things really tough right now. So this is always our busiest time of year, but it's much busier this year than it has been in previous years."