Hundreds of families across Clydebank are facing a bleak Christmas as “horrendous” levels of poverty are robbing them of any festive joy, a charity has warned.

A grim picture of the harsh reality being faced by parents struggling on the breadline has been highlighted by West Dunbartonshire Community Foodshare, which is snowed under by requests for help from parents struggling to cope.

Clair Coyle, foodshare charity trustee, told the Post: “We have never seen anything like the amount of poverty that people are experiencing.

“It’s horrendous – I cannot find the words to describe it.”

Clair was speaking as the foodshare works flat out to meet a big rise in requests to its toybank.

Clair added: “It is all driven by issues related to Universal Credit [UC], which started to be phased in among local claimants a year ago.

“We saw the difficulties UC was causing people and we anticipated a big rise in toybank referrals – and we were right.”

Referrals for children hoping for toys this Christmas are expected to hit 1,000 – up from 650 last year, a rise of 53 per cent.

Clair said: “The amount of poverty is getting worse and worse – I would describe it as disgusting.

“We work closely with support agencies and everybody is saying the same.

“Support workers are telling us some real horror stories.

“People are sitting with no gas or electricity and the cupboards are empty.”

Clair said the six-week wait for claimants to get any money from Universal Credit was driving people to despair.

She added: “They cannot cope with no money so they are having to take advances on their benefits which have to be paid back.

“We have heard of some people having to pay back £100 a month. There is no alternative for them – these are people in dire situations with no savings who are trying to cope at a time when benefits and wages have stayed the same.”

Clair said the foodshare was indebted to the many individuals, groups, churches and schools who had donated to the toybank.

Read more: Foodshare pay council £22k in rent out of £25k annual grant

Cash for Kids had donated £5,000 and Farmfoods had given the foodshare 200 vouchers

Union members at Faslane and Coulport are among those supporting the foodshare appeal.

Richie Calder and Andrew Brown from Unite handed £600 worth of vouchers to the charity’s toybank.

Andrew, Unite’s full-time convener at Faslane and Coulport, said: “We see it as absolutely crucial that support is given to the foodshare who are working flat out to help families this Christmas.

“It’s a big struggle for them, but they are determined to meet the demand and the work they do is absolutely brilliant.

“We are proud to make this donation but, at the same time, feel ashamed that the need for such help actually exists.

“Even the level of in-work poverty is absolutely deplorable.

“The foodshare is best placed to decide how to use the vouchers, but they were donated on the premise that perhaps they could be given to young adolescents who are sometimes forgotten about.”

Foodshares in Helensburgh and Inverclyde have also received cash support from the Unite members.

Adele Tonner, project co-ordinator at the foodshare, thanked the union members for their support.

She added: “The demand for help from families is definitely up.

“It started with Universal Credit, and as December is a hard month for families anyway, we are working hard to meet the demand.”

Gil Paterson, Clydebank’s MSP, said the rise in poverty is down to years of austerity, but he praised the community for stepping up to support those in need.

He told the Post: “I hate to be political, but the reality is that the rise in poverty is a result of Tory and LibDem austerity with budgets to support vulnerable citizens being slashed.

“Truthfully, austerity is just a polite word for creating poverty.

“However, I’m always heartened by the community spirit in Clydebank and the way people rally round to make sure that no child is left out at Christmas.

“Some of the people helping are in difficult circumstances themselves but they do what they can to help those in an even worse position.

“The generosity of this community is second to none and I thank the volunteers from the foodbank and everyone who donated or has helped out in their own way.”

Further information and details about the foodshare’s distribution points are given on the group’s Facebook page.