'I’ve had people hug me before... I feel like I'm doing a good thing for people'

Driver Ben is carefully examining a bunch of red roses – peeling off their plastic wrapping and dead-heading any wilting stems.

We’re standing on an ordinary residential road somewhere between Blackley and Moston, looking for an address among a row of identical 1930s-built houses.

It’s a gorgeous late autumn day, resplendent blue skies but glitteringly cold, the crisp leaves carpeting the floor a burnished auburn-gold, everything sparkling with frost. In the distance, the snow-dusted shoulders of the Pennines are basking in the November sun.

READ MORE: 'We've seen demand to help families in need double - but we almost had to close'

Ben is no florist, and the roses are a little dog-eared, bearing a ‘reduced’ sticker, but they’ll perk up once they’ve been placed in water, drooping stems now deftly removed.

And their inclusion in the parcel is just one of those little touches that makes Humans the foodbank with a difference.

“When we’re packing orders, we will often have a conversation where we think, what else can we do for this family?” founder Lewey Hallewell told the M.E.N.

“Say they’ve got a one-year old – have we got some wipes, nappies, baby food? Stuff they’re not expecting - but stuff that just lightens the load for that client.”

Humans deliver their parcels to their clients in unmarked vans, to ensure privacy and help avoid the stigma that can surround using a food bank. And they give clients a choice over what they eat, catering to a variety of different dietary requirements including vegan, vegetarian and halal.

“A lot of clients have said they’ve come to us because they’ve been using a ‘normal’ foodbank and not had the best experience,” Ben says. “But Lewey has done a good job of making us different.”

“He started this cause he used to use conventional foodbanks and would often get broken items and rotten veg.”

This Christmas, the Manchester Evening News is supporting Humans MCR to deliver Christmas hampers to 1,000 people across Greater Manchester. You can find out more about the campaign and how to donate here.

“I want people to eat food that they are familiar with, that is comforting to them,” said Lewey. “Because otherwise there is no dignity in that delivery.”

“We love to include flowers as much as we can,” he added. “A lot of these people may never get flowers. We want it to be a nice treat for them.”

Back on the road in north Manchester, Ben places the roses carefully on top of the food crate, grabs a bag of fresh fruit and veg, and carries it all to the door of its recipient.

The flowers certainly have the desired effect. “Wow!” exclaims the woman who opens the door, wrapped in a dressing gown with an eye mask perched on her head.

Behind her is a cluttered but cosy-looking living room, washing hanging up to dry, a dog yapping somewhere, and a toddler in a high chair looking disconcertedly at the strangers at the door.

“I wasn’t expecting all this. Thank you so much.”

Ben says he was told when he first started that some clients might “feel ashamed” about receiving their parcels. “I didn’t see it much at first, but there have been a few people where it’s been obvious that they were.”

“So for me it’s a case of making them feel at ease with it. Telling them that lots of people need it and it’s not a bad thing - we’re here for a reason.”

Our next stop is a quiet curving street in Blackley, dotted with 1970s red-brick complexes. Down to the basement flats, it’s toasty warm in the stairwell, with several prams parked outside the doors to the flats.

A couple come to the door, bearing broad smiles to see who has arrived. They give words of warm thanks as they hand back the empty box.

A carer takes in the next delivery. She too is surprised by how much has been brought: a crate’s worth of dry goods, plus the fresh items and another bag with an assortment of random but useful items.

A toilet brush, a jumbo box of washing powder and a pair of thick winter socks – especially needed in this weather – are all included. “He’ll love this,” she smiles.

At the third address, only a woman and her baby are at home. Originally from Syria, we speak with her husband over the phone.

Not speaking any English, we get by with some rusty Arabic, and she gratefully takes in the box. Behind her are blue balloons and the bouncing baby in his chair, wearing a tiny England shirt.

People are referred to the food bank by community professionals who think they might need it. This can be anyone from a local MP to a GP to a social worker.

But as we make our rounds, it becomes clear that sometimes the details the referral partners have provided are wrong. Some clients have only half a mobile number; others, scant instructions on how to reach a particular address in a labyrinthine housing estate.

It can’t be the easiest job in the world – but Ben enjoys what he does, and says it’s a nice change from his previous job delivering for a supermarket, where he says there was “a big corporate machine” hanging over him.

“People are always very appreciative,” he says. “Very grateful. I’ve had people hug me before.”

“The only thing I don’t always enjoy is driving itself – there are terrible drivers on the road. But that’s the only downside. Otherwise, I feel really appreciated, like I’m doing a really good thing for people.”

Humans has its own delivery app which Ben uses to find clients’ addresses and get directions for his route. He rings each client before setting off – that is, if the number’s right – to give them notice that he’s coming.

“They’re supposed to get a notification about it the day before,” he says, “but they’re not always in.”

That means Ben is left with a difficult decision. “We can’t normally leave it outside unless there’s a secure location,” he says. “And we can’t really wait around either. That would mean Lewey having to pay me to wait, when there’s other people relying on our deliveries.”

One such case happens on our route. We pull up on a terraced street in Gorton, but the woman on our list isn’t in.

“I’ve just been at an induction for a job I’m starting,” she says down the phone. “I’m coming back on the bus, I’ll be about half an hour.”

We can’t wait that long – Ben is on the seventh of fourteen deliveries on his route, and traffic is building as the school day draws to a close.

The client suggests a neighbour we can leave the parcel with. Luckily, he is in, and instantly agrees to take it when Ben explains the situation.

A happy ending – but it isn’t always the case. Ben sometimes has to give the news over the phone that delivery won’t be possible that day, which is hard. “You can hear the desperation down the phone,” he says.

“I do have a lot of compassion, but I can be slightly numb to it all too. I think you need to have that kind of personality to get through the day in a job like this.

“People explain their situations to you, and a lot of them are desperate. I’m good at talking to people and then not taking it on board. And it helps that you know you are providing relief to that situation.”

Ben doesn’t handle the referrals side of things, so he can’t speak to whether Humans are busier now than when he started this January. Some addresses he has visited regularly; others are new.

“A lot of people have had an injury or have fallen ill, so quite suddenly find themselves in a position where they can’t work,” says Ben. “We’re like a stop gap for that situation.”

Humans has a community grocers scheme too, where people who apply can purchase supermarket groceries at a heavily discounted rate. “That helps people get back on their feet too,” Ben says.

“But a lot of people take pride in telling me “this is the last time I’m going to need this,” he says. “And that once they're back on their feet, they're going to donate.”

Humans MCR

The Manchester Evening News Christmas Appeal is once again supporting Humans MCR, a charity doing incredible work to tackle hunger in Greater Manchester.

This organisation is small but mighty - they work to tackle hunger directly. The charity is run by someone who has relied on foodbanks himself.

We love this charity because they treat everyone with the dignity and respect we all deserve. Each week they provide a lifeline for 400 families and individuals across Manchester, Salford, Rochdale, Trafford, Stockport and Bury.

All their food is delivered in unmarked vans so no one knows the people they help are getting support from a foodbank. And they give people in need a choice over what they eat, accommodating a range of diets including vegan, vegetarian, halal and gluten-free.

The charity was set up by Lewey Hellewell whose own experience of using traditional food banks after being made redundant left him feeling that the process lacked dignity and compassion.

People can be referred to the charity by any local community professional - including GPs, local MPs, health visitors, care and social workers - to get emergency food packages, delivered straight to their door in unmarked vans.

This Christmas, they're expecting to deliver festive hampers to over 1,000 people in our region. The hampers have everything to make a full Christmas dinner - plus presents for children, and treats for adults.

• £12.50 will give a single person a food package for three days
• £36 will feed a family of four for three days
• £61 will provide a family with a Christmas hamper.

Donate here.