Rights and Responsibilities
Client Responsibilities
Respectful Conduct: Treat volunteers, staff, and other visitors with courtesy and dignity.
Accurate Information: Provide truthful and updated details regarding household size, residency, or status when requested.
Follow Policies: Abide by the specific rules, safety guidelines, and procedures of the NHCC.
Appropriate Boundaries: Ask staff and volunteers to perform only approved tasks regardless of your association with them, refrain from contacting staff at their homes, phone numbers or personal social media.
Status Updates: Inform the NHCC of any changes to personal or household status.
Violation of any of these responsibilities can result in service restrictions
Client Rights
Dignity and Respect: Receive fair, equitable treatment without discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, citizenship, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, income source, age, and mental or physical ability.
Privacy: Have personal and household information kept strictly confidential.
Clear Communication: Ask questions and receive understandable information about service rules and policies.
Feedback: Raise concerns or file complaints about services without fear of losing access.
Food Banks Canada, and affiliate food banks and programs will:
- Provide food and other assistance to those needing help regardless of race, national or ethnic origin, citizenship, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, income source, age, and mental or physical ability.
- Treat all those who access services with the utmost dignity and respect.
Implement best practices in the proper and safe storage and handling of food.
- Respect the privacy of those served and will maintain the confidentiality of personal information.
- Not sell donated food.
- Acquire and share food in a spirit of cooperation with other food banks and food programs.
- Strive to make the public aware of the existence of hunger and of the factors that contribute to it.
- Recognize that food banks are not a viable long-term response to hunger and devote part of their activities to reducing the need for food assistance
- Represent accurately, honestly, and completely their respective mission and activities to the larger community.