GroceryAid is making a real difference in Scotland

GroceryAid Financial Grant support for retail staff in Scotland has rocketed in recent years as more and more colleagues become aware that help is actually available when they need it.

Once pretty much unknown north of Hadrian’s Wall, GroceryAid has rapidly increased its presence and engagement in Scotland over the last four or five years, thanks in no small part to the fantastic efforts of the GroceryAid Scotland committee and to flagship events like Checkout Scotland.

The proof of that progress is there in black and white in the industry charity’s recent Half-Year Scottish Report which shows clearly that in financial year April 2025 to March 2026, the charity is on course to once again break Financial Grant spending records in Scotland.

In the preceding financial year – 2024/25 – GroceryAid made Financial Grants of £403,401 to 714 Scottish industry colleagues, a record at the time.

But in just the six months from Apr 2025 to September 2025, GroceryAid had already paid out £225,271 to 532 colleagues. The full year picture, then, is set to break yet another record.

This is remarkable in light of the fact that only five years or so ago, the charity paid out only £45,006 to just 67 colleagues. The current financial year is on course to see more than 10 times that amount being paid out.

The fact that so many industry colleagues require financial support is clearly a distressing indication, but the fact that the number of grants being made is rising so rapidly is proof that more people than ever now know that financial help is available if and when they need it.

Equally encouraging is the fact that in 2025, GroceryAid made payments of £80,700 to 297 people in Scotland as part of its School Essentials Grant. These one-off payments benefitted 538 individual children and made a real difference to families across Scotland.

The figures reflect the severity of the requirement for financial assistance from our colleagues in this industry, but the numbers also clearly show that more and more people are now getting in touch with GroceryAid and know that the help they’ve earned by working in this sector is available to them.