Food banks: Sharon's partner died and her benefits were delayed then cut, leaving her with nothing

When her partner died two and a half years ago, Sharon found herself at one of the lowest points in her life - deep in grief, without any income, fearing she could lose her home and forced to rely on a food bank.

She and John had been together for 17 years. When he became disabled 10 years before his death, she gave up her job at Greggs to become his full-time carer. "It was 24/7 - I had to get him out of bed, wash him, dress him, cook his meals, it was a lot. The surgery asked if he wanted help from a nurse but he wanted me - and I was happy to do that."

Sharon turned to the Edinburgh Food Project after her partner died and her benefits were delayed | TSPL

John's health gradually worsened. "He went into hospital two days before Christmas and didn't come home," says Sharon. "After he passed, I closed myself off from everybody, I didn't want to talk to anybody, I was a mess."

But as well as grieving the loss of her partner, Sharon faced serious money problems. "We were on Universal Credit and John was claiming for me, so all his debts came to me, which was about £4,500." The claim had to be reassessed, which meant a five-week wait without any payments.

There were also rent arrears on their flat, which meant Sharon could have lost her home.

In a desperate financial situation, a friend took Sharon to the Edinburgh Food Project's food bank at the Thistle Foundation's Centre for Wellbeing in Craigmillar. "I had to basically rely on the food bank because Universal Credit left me more than a month without any income," she says.

And when the Universal Credit payments eventually restarted, it was less than her entitlement because of deductions for the debt."When I got my Universal Credit the debt was coming off, so I was only getting half of what I was entitled to. I still had to use the food bank."

She and John had sometimes used a food bank before due to their precarious financial position, but Sharon remembers what it was like when she first went after John's death and she was in desperate need. "I felt embarrassed because I thought other people needed it more than me, but I had to do it because I had nothing.”

With help and support from friends, the food bank and other charities, Sharon is now on the road to recovery, feeling more confident and helping as a volunteer at the food bank.

"I do the volunteering because I know what people are going through because I've been there myself," she says.

But she believes her experience highlights how badly the system lets people down when they are in crisis and most in need of help.

And she is part of a group organised by Edinburgh Food Project which has been trying to bring that message home to politicians during the election.

The food project's Experts by Experience panel - four people with direct experience of hunger and hardship - spent time visiting the Scottish Parliament, meeting MSPs and discussing their concerns before hosting a hustings and quizzing candidates on the key issues they identified.

Sharon wanted to know what they were going to do about the number of people having to use food banks and in particular the five-week wait for Universal Credit which is one of the main factors which Edinburgh Food Project organisers say drives people to come to them. “It’s wrong,” says Sharon. “They need to do more to make sure people who need help get it.”