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Published 13:19 IST, October 30th 2020

Chelsea’s Reece James donates £10k to feed hungry people in London, promises £100k more

Chelsea defender Reece James has donated £10,000 to feed hungry people in London, while also pledging 10 times the current amount until December.

Reported by: Minaam Ansari
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Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford has been receiving immense praise for his campaign against child hunger, urging the UK government to extend the free school meals scheme until the Easter of 2021. The 22-year-old has received support from all quarters, including 200 cafes and restaurants, besides garnering a million signatures online. Now, Chelsea defender Reece James has joined the initiative and has donated £10,000 to end child hunger. 

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Reece James donation estimated at £10,000

According to a report by Daily Mail, James has donated £10,000 to a London food charity that is on the frontlines in the fight against child hunger. The Chelsea defender has been working with Felix Project - that delivers surplus food to the needy in London. He has also pledged to boost the donation amount to £100,000 until December. 

James has also launched a fundraising page to help the charity. Felix Project has set a target of providing 19 million meals until the end of 2020. A total of 61 meals are delivered for every £10 donated to the charity. James is following in the footsteps of his national teammate Rashford in helping the deprived sections of society. 

Also Read | Marcus Rashford lauds Indian charity Akshaya Patra for offering free school meals

Marcus Rashford campaign receives a million signatures 

Rashford launched an online campaign after the Members of Parliament (MPs) voted out a labour motion that demanded the school meals scheme be extended in the term breaks until the Easter of 2021, citing the coronavirus crisis. Since his appeal, the petition has crossed a million signatures in favour of the school meals scheme. 

According to All Of Us Together, a team of tech and campaign volunteers, at least 200 cafes and restaurants have pledged their support to the Marcus Rashford campaign. The Guardian reports that these businesses will support struggling families with food during the term breaks.

Also Read | Marcus Rashford dubbed 'future captain' after passing up penalty despite treble chance

Rashford raises £20 million for charity 

Marcus Rashford has raised a mammoth amount, estimated at £20 million, the proceeds of which will be donated to UK-based charity Fareshare. He even tasked his own team to volunteer the charity last week. The 22-year-old England international has stated he has been through some of the problems that the struggling families are facing these days and doesn't want a similar situation in front of him. 

Also Read | Marcus Rashford's appeal to UK government to end child food poverty crosses 1 million signatures

Image courtesy: Reece James Twitter 

Updated 13:19 IST, October 30th 2020